Capitalogix

A Matter of Perspective

What could turn this boy, who I happily go to Cowboys games with ...

... Into this boy?

When it happened, I posted this comment on Twitter: "My high-school age son came home today as a Platinum Blond. Hooray ... it makes guessing 'What's Next' so much more fun." 

The responses were clever.  One guy said: "Grounding is next, I expect."  Someone else thought providing a little contrast would help. They said: "Here's what could be next ... Well, hope not ... but you never know".  Click this link to see what they were referring to.

As it turns out, his blondness was something many football players did to celebrate their team making the play-offs and getting to play at the new Cowboys' Stadium.

Somehow (in this context) he looks better to me already ... But he doesn't have my burst of slowness, yet.

The point is that many things we initially perceive one way, may turn out to be something quite different all-together.

Here is a Story to Illustrate This Better ... And to Make it Stick.

This is another one of those stories I get, in different forms, from time-to-time.

It is called "Who Knows?" And sometimes it is told as an old story from China, while other times it is set during the American Civil War.

Nevertheless, "Who Knows?" is one of those  "sticky" stories that people like to re-shape and re-tell.  So, with no further ado, here it is for you to read for yourself.

Who Knows?

A farmer's horse ran away one day and all the villagers came to him saying, Oh what bad luck you've had! Your horse that you need to do your work is gone!

The farmer shrugged his shoulders and said, Good luck, bad luck. Who knows?

Several days later, the farmer's horse returned, followed by a herd of wild horses!

Oh what good luck you have, cried the same villagers! Not only has your horse returned, he has brought you many horses!

The farmer again shrugged his shoulders and said, Good luck, bad luck. Who knows?

One day not long after, the farmer's son was trying to break one of the wild horses. He was thrown off the horse and broke his leg.

Oh what bad luck you have! Cried the villagers. Now your son has a broken leg. Who will help you?

The farmer shrugged his shoulders and said, Good luck, bad luck. Who knows?

Not long after, as the son was recuperating, an army came through the village and took all the young males to fight in a war in another region. They did not take the farmer's son because of his broken leg.

Oh what good luck you have! The villagers cried once again. Your son has been spared being taken off to war because of his broken leg!

The farmer shrugged his shoulders and said, Good luck, bad luck. Who knows?

We Don't Know ... Yet.

This is a great story to remember when you're projecting far beyond the present moment ... or even when you're just worrying about what will happen next?

The things we think are good fortune can often have bad endings; and vice-versa. How many times have you looked back on what seemed like bad luck, when it happened, but later realized that it was the start of something better?

Made to Stick: 

This story reminded me of the book by Chip and Dan Heath, called Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.  It is a fascinating explanation about what makes an idea memorable or interesting.

The premise is that you should focus on the six things that make ideas stick – which they summed up in the mnemonic "SUCCES" (yes, I know that success has two "s"s at the end ... I didn't make up the acronym).  Here is what that represents:

• Simple — find the core of any idea;
• Unexpected — grab people's attention by surprising them;
• Concrete — make sure an idea can be grasped and remembered later;
• Credibility — give an idea believability;
• Emotion — help people see the importance of an idea;
• Stories — empower people to use an idea through narrative.

Other Resources:

• Link to the Book: Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die
• Link to the Heath Brothers' Made to Stick Website
• Link to Videos about Made to Stick.

Clusters of Thoughts

It surprises me how many of my thoughts cluster on a particular theme for a period of time. I guess it makes sense because I think and write about things I notice that catch my interest.  And as my focus changes from time to time, what interests me changes.  It is kind of like not being able to get a song out of your head ... only it's about what you focus on.

I heard a good explanation for this at a Tony Robbins seminar this week.

He has an exercise where you open your eyes and look around the room, paying attention to anything that has a bright green color to it.

Try it, look around the room noticing everything you can remember that has green in or on it.

Then close your eyes, and without looking around again, try to remember anything that was red.  You probably can remember a lot more green things, than red things.

Tony calls this "reticular activation". But it's just a fancy name for the same reason that if you buy a white Lexus, all of a sudden you see white Lexus cars everywhere you go. The things you focus-on show up more often in your life simply because you notice them more often.

If you're curious, this week, the theme that I'm noticing in my personal, professional and business life is time, speed and pace. Here's a link to that post.

Software to Help You Manage Your Mind

Visual Thinking, Idea Mapping or Mind-Mapping ... whatever you call it, there are some terrific new tools available to help you think, plan and write better.

I find I'm using it more often and for more things, like: note-taking, process maps, brainstorming and presentations.

How Does It Work?

Mind-Mapping is related to outlining. So you already know how to do it.  It is intuitive, and makes it easy to see thought structure and relationships. It also makes it easy to review and re-organize the framework that organizes your data. Here is an example showing what you can do with a tool like this.

How Can You Use Mind-Mapping Software?

I use this type of software like a virtual whiteboard.  It helps me organize a meeting or present a thought process. What used to be a form on a piece of paper, now becomes the dynamic center of collective focus.  For example, here is a map template from Mindjet's MindManager; it is used to evaluate an idea using SWOT analysis (which stands for: strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat).

The structure of the outline and actually helps control focus and trigger new ideas. And the software allow me to add detail and new items in any order.  The result is better understanding and often, new ideas and possibilities.

Brainstorming.

The computer age has made it a lot easier for me to collect data. Then what? Data is a raw material, but I often want to think better ... rather than to just have more data. So, I use visual thinking tools to help me make sense of lots of ideas. It often helps me see relationships and move items around to places where they fit better, or trigger new thoughts.

For brainstorming, the software is a lot like writing ideas on Post-It Notes and moving them around on a whiteboard.  I like being able to enter information the order that occurs to me, rather than having to understand the bigger picture.

In fact, it's by placing all the seemingly random bits of information page and dragging them around into piles, that the bigger picture often reveals itself to me.

To do that, I try to figure what relates the piles, and I create a label for that category. I then try to figure out how categories fit together, and ultimately come up with a better understanding of the thought framework. From there, it doesn't take much work to fill out weaker areas of the outline, adding an idea here, moving an idea from there.

The Software Tools.

Even if you tried a tool like this before, it is time for a fresh look.  These tools have evolved and are worth having and using.

Mindjet's MindManager is the tool I use most often. The current version is stable and mature, with a nice feature set and the ability to export information into a variety of programs and formats. I especially like the new option to export a live branching version of the mind map in PDF format.

Mindjet offers a template gallery for you to download 70+ sample maps to use.

Another tool I've been using more of lately is Tony Buzan's iMindMap.  Buzan is a well-known proponent of mind mapping and has created a visually appealing tool.

It's compelling, and I'm trying to use it more. They also have a nice collection of videos explaining the software and concepts behind mind-mapping that is worth exploring.

Personally, though, for real work I find myself going back to Mindjet product.

In addition, there's an open-source version called FreeMind. Here's the link to try that tool as well.

How To Type More Accurately and Much Faster With Asutype

I'm surprised by how much of my typing is now done outside of traditional e-mail or business software (like Microsoft Word). Instead, my typing is done in web-based applications like my blog, Facebook, or Twitter. That's where a program like Asutype really shines.

I have been using a very effective spell-checking and text expansion program for several years now. It works so well that I forget it's there, even though it automatically fixes most of my typing errors and makes it easy for me to enter repetitive phrases or pieces of information.  The bottom-line is that it helps me type more accurately and much faster.

There are three basic ways to use the software.

1. Correct Mistakes Interactively. The first is an interactive spell checker that works as you type (hence the name "Asutype"). When you type something that isn't in its dictionaries, it pops up a correction box with several of the most likely replacement candidates. This provides a quick and easy way to fix your spelling without having to retype anything.
   
   
   
   
2. Correct Repetitive Mistakes Automatically. The software also keeps track of the mistakes you make as well as the corrections that you apply and allows you to create a list of automatic entries. From time-to-time I'll review the list of corrections and choose to add them to my permanent list. When I do that, then next time I mistype that word or phrase, the software automatically fixes it (without even asking). This means I type much quicker because most of my typing mistakes are repetitive and that means I make them consistently). I'm actually surprised by how many different ways I could misspell certain words. It's not so much that I don't know how to spell them, it's that my fingers don't do the right thing when I'm trying to type quickly or get distracted.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Automate Repetitive Typing.  The software also has some very powerful text expansion capabilities. I think of them almost as abbreviations or shortcuts. There are certain words or phrases that I type often (examples include: Capitalogix, our web address, or phrase like "please contact me if you have questions or comments".). Another example might be to use the abbreviation "VTY", which could expand to "very truly yours" …  and then your signature block.

You never have a second chance to make a first impression, so I'm glad that Asutype helps me seem like a good speller. Here are the links for you to find out more information or to download a trial copy yourself. I don't have anything to do with the company other than I'm a happy user. I've had my license for years, and I can vouch for their service, support, and the good experience that I've had with their tool. I hope you like it too.

Turn Talking Into Typing, Automatically

Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 gets it right.  Finally speech recognition that is surprisingly accurate, even with little or no training.  Here is a 20-second video of me talking - and it typing.

I wrote about using dictation before.  This is different, because it gets smarter as you use it. There are easy ways to edit results, and the program learns from each correction.

For me, I know it works because I find myself using it to create drafts of many things.  And if it wasn't easier and more convenient than typing ... I wouldn't use it.  Instead, I often wait to create the draft at the computer with Dragon NaturallySpeaking.  The writing ends-up sounding more natural if the first draft was spoken.

This program has matured nicely.  Earlier versions were temperamental and took a long time to train.  This one worked out-of-the-box.  I use it with a simple usb microphone (not even the noise-canceling headset they include). It also works with my handheld Olympus voice recorder.

Give it a try.

LiveScribe - All Things Fit to Print

I got a new gadget. It is a Livescribe pen that records both what it hears and what you write.

From a small sample of using it about a dozen times so far, I am impressed; Livescribe works great, and delivers immediate benefit at meetings and seminars.  I use it to review conversations and brain-storming sessions for clarification, or to catch something I missed the first time through.

It generates an interesting polarity of responses though. Some people get it instantly and want to know where they can buy them.  Others couldn't care less.  No one objected to its use during the meeting - and I suspect that it became invisible quickly.

It records about a hundred hours of surprisingly clear audio.  The pen has a camera, just above the tip, that captures the image of what is being written -- and synchronizes this to what you hear or say.  And if you go back and touch the tip of the pen to writing on the page, you hear what was being said while it was written.  You can even control the playback speed to go faster, or slower, when you want.

The Livescribe pen looks and feels nice.  It comes with a leather travel case and a dock to sync it with your computer.  There is well-designed software that lets you manage and share the results. Livescribe created a place to post "pen-casts" online, to share with your team.  You can limit who see it with an access control list or leave it open.  Click here for an example.

I'm sending my son to back to school with one.  It seems like the perfect environment for a tool like this. 

All-in-all, Livescribe is worth a try. For more information about this interesting technology, here is the Livescribe's site.

Here are some video demos.

It looks like college book stores and Amazon are expected to be the big distribution channels.

Word Cloud Text Toy

The image on the left is a Word Cloud of Bernanke's speech from last week. I used it in the prior Weekly Commentary.

The Word Cloud is more than just a text toy.  It is a data visualization tool that gives emphasis to frequently used words.

I used one from Wordle (and yes, you can make your own there).

Click the image to see the full version on the website.

I liked the result on Bernanke's speech.  So, I tried it on my list of goals and plans.  Here is the result.

 

Capturing To Do Items and Ideas to Get Things Done

An Old Take on New Ideas:

How many times have you tried to remember something that you knew you were forgetting? As I get older, it seems to happen more often. I'm not sure if it's because of age, or because I think more and do less. Nonetheless, I love having a process to capture, store, and retrieve, relevant information.

For years I've been "a gadget guy." I'm the guy that waits in line to buy the first hot new phone. I always have the best PDA, the newest laptop. And I constantly try different software to capture ideas, produce mind maps, or otherwise give me a creative and competitive advantage.

Surprisingly, the newest addition to my arsenal of productivity tools is a small pad of paper. Yes, I now carry a small pad of paper in my pocket, and I pull it out to capture ideas, phrases, and to-do items throughout the day. It's quick, easy, and I don't have to worry about it recognizing my handwriting. I recognize my handwriting.

Throughout the day, I simply write the ideas, phrases, key words - and of course the to do items that I should do, want to do, or want someone else to do.   

At the end of the day (or when my page is full) I call Copytalk and dictate the whole list into the telephone. A few minutes later, I get an e-mail with all of the items in electronic format. I then copy these and simply paste them into a web application called Toodledo, which is a categorized to-do list accessible online.

Toodle-do is a great place to help me get things done. It allows me to list each task, categorize it in ways I want, as well as create priorities, due dates, and different tags that you could use for locations or roles. I very quickly ended up with close to 1,000 to-dos sorted in many categories. So when I get an idea on something to write about, or come up with new development projects or things to talk about with friends, I have one place to go.  Best part for me is that when I'm looking for something, this list is easy to search, easy to find, and easy to keep up-to-date.

All-in-all, it's a pretty good system, and I love how it feels to empty my brain every day.

A Better Copy Than the Original

ClipMate is a little piece of software that I didn't expect to think much of.
Someone recommended that I try it, and I did; but without much hope.
Instead, I find that it's a utility that I use dozens of times everyday.

The simple description is that ClipMate is a universal clipboard enhancement that works alongside the regular Windows Clipboard and remembers every piece of data (both text and graphics) that you cut, copy or screen-capture.  Once your data is saved in ClipMate, you can select an item and it is automatically placed back on the Clipboard or directly to wherever you select. 

The author of ClipMate has been updating this program for over 16 years, and clearly listens to user suggestions.  The result is mature product that does more than I could have imagined.

For example, within ClipMate you can view, print, edit, reformat, convert to upper/lower case, search, rename, and reorder Clip Items.

There are several "heavy lifting" features such as pasting multiple items all at once, using Templates, and lots of "clean-up" functions like spell-check, format stripping, removing extra line breaks, spaces and strange characters (I call this de-crappifying the document). All-in-all, it does a lot of things well.

It's a Clip Organizer Too:

Once you start using it to capture data, you're going to want to find and use it too.  ClipMate allows you to store your clips in different folders, or collections, based on how you work, and to set retention rules accordingly. I suspect that many users keep their most-commonly used data in their "Safe" collection, while others spread it out by topic, project, source, etc..  Personally, I have a section for "Templates" that I re-use, Quotes, Things to Purchase, Web Sites, Passwords, Humor, even graphic elements. 

Beyond basic organization, it is searchable; so I can find something that I saved, regardless of where I put it.

ClipMate can hold tens of thousands of items, and its SQL-based search engine can find them all quickly for you.  Even if you decide to do nothing special with your clips - you'll always have the last 1000 clips at you disposal, ready to paste wherever you need them.  When you're ready to use a "clip", just select it in ClipMate, and it's "loaded" onto the system clipboard, ready for pasting into any program.  And with many programs, you can now drag/drop the clip directly from ClipMate.

Try it; it's an incredibly useful tool that you'll use everyday.

The Rhythm of Writing

Here is a trick I use to write better and more naturally. It is called "timed writing" and it has been easy and effective for me. This post will briefly describe how it works.

First, pick a song to listen to while doing the exercise. Then I get a piece of paper and a pen. When the song starts, begin writing. Don't type or use a computer. Don't pause, don't stop. Don't think. Don't correct your spelling or grammar. Just write. If you can't think of anything else to write write whatever you say to yourself; even if it is "what should I say here?" But, don't let the pen stop writing until the song stops.

Second, use another song to review what you wrote. When I do this step, I cross-out things I didn't like. I make notes, annotations, draw lines connecting one paragraph to another, insert comments or write trigger words. Sometimes I outline a different idea flow. But I don't stop until the song stops. This is a great time to check the intention and attitude of the piece. Sometimes I look at a paragraph and ask myself "what is this supposed to say?" And I write the answer. It is often a great headline, lead-in, or summary. When the song is over, I often take a break to clear my head.

The next step looks similar to the first. Put on a song, and re-write the whole thing … from the beginning … with the new structure, comments and whatever else comes out in the process. By this step, the piece is usually dramatically better than it was the first time. However, a few more changes often happen when I re-enter the piece into the computer.

Handwriting seems to access different parts of the brain and creative process than typing does.  Somehow the combination works for me.  Try this and let me know what you think.