Yearly Archives: 2013

Backhoes and Bureaucracy

We use tools because they make us more efficient, able to get more done, with less effort. I use tools a lot, for construction, software development, management, leadership, organizing, travel, and I appreciate mechanics who can really use a tool. I worked a summer with Sterling Guthrie, backhoe artist. He had a totally different wayRead… Read more »

Weekly Round-up: October 18, 2013

Gadi Ben-Yehuda This week is all about data in its many forms and for its many uses: Pew Research details “12 trends shaping digital news,” the importance for government agencies: make sure your information is optimized for the formats in which people access it! Business Technology asks “E-government: Has the dam broken on government data?,”Read… Read more »

Are you LinkedIn for Success?

“Networking is an essential part of building wealth.” – Armstrong Williams If you were to leave your job today, how fast do you think you could you get another one? Well, if you knew the right people, it probably wouldn’t take you very long at all. The more contacts you have, the more likely youRead… Read more »

Group Facilitation Skills Workshop from Sarah Fisk

We have another post today submittedvia our Submit-to-Blog Form, this time by NCDD member Sam Kaner of Community At Work. Do you have field news you want to share with the rest of us? Just click here to submit your news post for the NCDD Blog! Community At Work is pleased to be of aRead… Read more »

Get Clear On Your Why

Quote: “It’s important that people should know what you stand for. It’s equally important that they know what you won’t stand for.” – Mary Waldrip We often see celebrities that have reached the pinnacle of their industry receiving awards and accolades, but then we will see that same celebrity the next day sometimes getting arrested.Read… Read more »

Breathe! How a Holistic Approach Helped Us Survive the Government Shutdown

The latest in our Health and Wellness series of yoga classes for employees started last week and I began thinking how some of the fundamentals we’ve been learning in yoga can be applied to managing during an unexpected or challenging situation, such as the government shutdown. The implications of the shutdown have been far-reaching –Read… Read more »

The Easy Way Out

One of life’s most disconcerting lessons to learn is that our experience in the world isn’t about reality and truths it is about the stories we tell ourselves are real and true. What we believe is happening in our lives is really nothing more than a story that we are making up about what isRead… Read more »

Suggestions for governments stepping into open data

I’ve been completing a survey for the Spatial Industries Business Association (SIBA) related to the Queensland Government’s open data initiative, where one of the questions asked Can you list or describe any learnings that would be useful in Queensland? I’ve provided a number of my thoughts on this topic, having closely observed open data initiativesRead… Read more »

Bridging Technology Communities

We’re two days down and on the home stretch of day three of the annual Code for America Summit, and I’ve had the pleasure of meeting our upcoming 2014 Cities. One important technology question that’s occupying my thoughts as we prepare for the 2013/2014 transition is the impact of our technology choices on partner cities.Read… Read more »