The words every man dreads hearing from his wife: “Does this dress make me look fat?” I’ll skip past the endless stream of jokes that have arisen regarding this quintessential battle-of-the-sexes cliche, and cut to the chase: what are you looking for when you ask someone for feedback? And, just as importantly, what do you [ Read More ]
Throughout my career I have held roles with all kinds of titles, but in the end, at my core, I am a project manager. That is how I see myself and how I tend to identify, no matter what my formal title. And it’s for a very, very simple reason: there is one constant in [ Read More ]
As I look at job postings on Dice and Monster, I have been noticing a disturbing, yet unsurprising, trend emerge: an increase in the number of employers seeking candidates who can function as both project managers and development leads on projects. Naturally, difficult economic conditions demand a re-evaluation of spending habits. And, in cases where [ Read More ]
I hate the phrase “work-life balance.” I truly can’t stand it. I think it’s a b.s. phrase that is one of those organizational design notions that sounds really, really good, but in truth is so vague that everyone has their own definition, leaving no consensus on any kind of standardized meaning. Implications of Being “Even” [ Read More ]
I have recently gone through a series of interviews/screenings where the net result was, “I’m sorry, but you are just over-qualified for this position.” In response to that highly frustrating designation, I propose the following: Being classified as “over-qualified” is usually less “You cost too much” and more “I’m afraid you’ll be bored and leave [ Read More ]
Like many other of the career IT professionals I work with these days, I took a decent sized paycut for my current job. (As far as political statements go, that was one my former boss found especially telling.) And when you ask any of us why we would do that — particularly given that, at [ Read More ]
In my recent quest to collect as much information as possible to educate myself about finances and investing (and area in which I am negligently ignorant) I came across a book that has proven to be highly valuable, if not a bit unsettling. It’s “Prince Charming Isn’t Coming: How Women Get Smart About Money” by [ Read More ]