All About Project Management Project management is a carefully planned and organized effort to accomplish a successful project. A project is a one-time effort that produces a specific result, for example, a building or a major new computer system. This is in contrast to a program, which is 1) an ongoing process, such as a quality control program, or 2) an activity to manage a series of multiple projects together. In some countries, the term "program" refers to a software tool and the term "programme" can mean a TV or radio show. Project management includes developing a project plan, which includes defining and confirming the project goals and objectives, identifying tasks and how goals will be achieved, quantifying the resources needed, and determining budgets and timelines for completion. Projects usually follow major phases or stages (with various titles for these), including feasibility, definition, project planning, implementation, evaluation and support/maintenance. Sections of This Topic Include
Art Set on the App Store The Elegant, Effective Election Data Visualization That Is Thankfully Not A Map : MapBrief™ We occasionally field the suggestion, nay, insinuation, that our posture here at Mapbrief is unduly critical. Whether it be pie charts, contiguous cartograms, or untucked shirts, our opinions are admittedly fixed. So much so that you might say “dogma”; we say “consistency”. But in the spirit of staying positive, let’s admire this recent graphic from the Washington Post detailing campaign contributions: Note the five dimensions of information: 1) donor name, 2) total donation, 3) state of Senate race, 4) receiving political party, and 5) relative size of state-level donation. What makes me especially happy is that I can so clearly picture what this graphic could have been: a map of the US with the 11 states having some choropleth ramp (39 states of “no data”!) The horror. Moral of the story: sometimes the best map is no map. Great job by the Post team. —Brian Timoney
GarageBand on the App Store Brain Pickings Funk Drummer on the App Store SKILLS & TOOLS — Quirky Blog Research. It’s the hero of any great Quirky submission. A thorough analysis of your invention’s competitive landscape has three key benefits: 1. 2. 3. Now that we understand why doing your research before submitting is a good thing, let’s get into some best practices. Google should be your first stop right after you’ve thought up an invention. - Use web friendly words. - Try synonyms. - Keep searches short and sweet. - Use quotes to lock a phrase. - Search within a site. - Don’t forget “images” and “shopping.” Find more Google search tips here. Couldn’t find your invention online? - Amazon - international eCommerce site; largest in the United States - Kickstarter - global crowdfunding platform - Indiegogo - another international crowdfunding site - ThinkGeek - online retailer catering to computer enthusiasts and “geek” culture - This is why I’m broke - online magazine - Skymall - shopping magazine - Your market competitor’s websites.
Samplebot on the App Store How To Go From Dreaming To Doing: 4 Steps To Motivation You have stuff you know you should be doing. But it doesn’t get done. You need to go from dreaming to doing — but it’s hard. You want to accomplish more at work, hit the gym, get a new job or study harder at school… but it’s not happening. I’ve talked about strategies to make challenges easier like the 20 second rule. What gets you going when you’re not motivated to reach those longer term goals? There’s a solution that can help you not only make change easier, but boost motivation. Yes, WOOP. WishOutcomeObstaclePlan Can a method with the silliest name in social science really work? People who say they want to exercise more and use the WOOP method do dramatically better: How does it work? The first step is wishing. Here’s how to do it right. 1) Wish (But Don’t Stop There) Everything starts with a wish. Having a positive attitude is pretty much essential because a negative attitude makes us more likely to quit — or to never start in the first place. Why? Want to lose weight? 4) Make A Plan Tags:
Anytune Pro+ on the App Store Decision Making: The #1 Secret Of Astronauts, Samurai, Navy SEALs, and Psychopaths We all make a lot of bad decisions. With careers: More than half of teachers quit their jobs within four years. In fact, one study in Philadelphia schools found that a teacher was almost two times more likely to drop out than a student. In our jobs: A study showed that when doctors reckoned themselves “completely certain” about a diagnosis, they were wrong 40% of the time. And in our personal lives: …an estimated 61,535 tattoos were reversed in the United States in 2009. So how can we all make better decisions? It’s “arousal control.” That’s a fancy word for keeping a cool head. In their book, Decisive, Chip and Dan Heath identify short term emotion as one of the primary causes of bad decisions. Astronauts, samurai, Navy SEALs, and psychopaths. 150 Miles Above The Earth Is No Place For Panic It’s the 1960’s and NASA is going to send people to the moon for the first time. How do you make sure astronauts don’t freak out in the cold darkness of space where there’s no help? You’re NASA. No. Nope.