Um shift light.....who knew

[Cole]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

I have sent reports or proposals back to new or intern engineers marked with just "????" but not because I wanted them to come socialize (come on they are engineers after all) but because I want them to think about and find what is wrong not simply point it out to them. I will of course follow up very shortly after returning it to see if they figured it out. Many do, some don't, and that is when the coaching starts.

My thing is that I've been thrown into the fire a lot in the past few weeks. I had to co-ordinate 2 jobs at the same time, dealing with about 9 people to get those 2 jobs set up, all while I was doing fieldwork on another job, so I'd be using my lunch break AND taking a couple minutes here and there while I was actually doing work to talk to these other clients to get shit set up. Then, I was asked to do reports for both of those jobs, which I'd never done before. I finished both those reports in a day, sent them off to my boss, and he told me the format had changed recently for our reports (I had based the previous reports off of a format he forwarded to me when he asked me to do the reports).

Short of the long is, don't throw your employees under the bus, asking them to talk to high level managers without adequate time and environments to properly take care of things.

Luckily, both jobs went off without a hitch and reports were finalized within 2 days of returning to the office. That's a better turn around time than anyone was expecting, I think.

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

If the guy was any good at all he would have figured out that they were playing him.

The cynic in me laughs at that, but the reality is that it's not true. It has less to do with how "good" a manager someone is and more to do with how they're programmed. This guy was hard wired for social interaction.

While we were playing him in one sense, in a different sense we were giving him exactly what he needed. That was the focus of the course where this all hit me. You observe your colleagues, figure out what their work style is, and from that figure out what they need from you to get the most out of the job. A thinker needs you to give him lots of information and be patient with him while he digests it. A director needs you to get right to the point and avoid wasting his time. A socializer thrives on the social interaction and sees the director types as unfriendly. A relater just wants everyone to get along.

Before I took the course, nobody in the group actually got along with this guy, because we were all focused on the work and couldn't figure out what the hell he was doing. He really did seem incompetent, despite having an alphabet of certifications and an encyclopedic knowledge of accounting. All his coaching notes turned into vague arguments that left everyone, including him, unhappy.

When we started "managing" him, not only did our own evaluations from him improve, but his evaluations from above improved as well because his projects were running smoother and meeting deadlines and budgets. And I actually started liking the guy.

That's not something we could have done by sitting down with him and discussing it. That had actually been attempted with disastrous results because the guy was in complete denial about his own work style.

Originally Posted by stugray

How many people like to turn off the stereo and climate controls when driving hard to maximize focus on the car?

I turn down the stereo, but there's actually research around that to support doing it. Parts of the brain that interpret speech and music are also involved in driving, and having that noise on can be a distraction from the road. It's one of the reasons hands-free units for cell phones don't do anything at all to keep people from driving like morons when they're talking on the phone.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by stugray

Actually I disagree. I have used it on occasion.

WHAT! ........ you disagree with ...... humfrz ......



Well, OK, I see your point. Back in the day, when I was driving a truck with a 2 speed axle, a lot of times, I would forget which side of the axle I was in and I could have used a light/indicator .....

Get it wrong and you might either stall the engine, or grind off at least a pound of gear material ......


humfrz

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by Cole

he told me the format had changed recently for our reports (I had based the previous reports off of a format he forwarded to me when he asked me to do the reports).

Haha... I'll get you another copy of the memo.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy3rjQGc6lA"]Office Space TPS Reports - YouTube[/ame]

[Cole]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

Haha... I'll get you another copy of the memo.

[url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy3rjQGc6lA"]Office Space TPS Reports - YouTube[url]

My (office) life in a nutshell. I prefer field work

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by Cole

My (office) life in a nutshell. I prefer field work

Mine, as well, is absurdly similar.

[extrashaky]

Mine was like that. Now I make my own schedule and travel every single week, and I haven't laid eyes on a single one of my coworkers in person in two months. In fact, it's not unusual for me to go an entire week without an email or phone call from my supervisor. As long as I keep turning in audits, they just leave me alone.

I'm going to enjoy this while it lasts.

[humfrz]

I don't have a boss anymore ....... well, except for mrs humfrz ......


humfrz

[86kahl]

Slightly back on topic:

For the past week I've been setting my shift light to come on at 4800. It lets me know I'm out of torque valley and it stays solid red till I'm about to hit the fuel cut, then it blinks. Helps to know if I shifted back into the powerband or not 😅😅

[PandaSPUR]

Originally Posted by 86kahl

Slightly back on topic:

For the past week I've been setting my shift light to come on at 4800. It lets me know I'm out of torque valley and it stays solid red till I'm about to hit the fuel cut, then it blinks. Helps to know if I shifted back into the powerband or not 😅😅

lol, interesting use of that light. haven't thought of it before.

[MrDinkleman]

Success!! Thanks to everyone who assisted! I have the gear indicator working. I typically only look at it when I am on a long boring straight section of road (but not the freeway when I am almost always in 6th) and need to update my mind about what gear I am in...

Originally Posted by extrashaky

I turn down the stereo, but there's actually research around that to support doing it. Parts of the brain that interpret speech and music are also involved in driving, and having that noise on can be a distraction from the road. It's one of the reasons hands-free units for cell phones don't do anything at all to keep people from driving like morons when they're talking on the phone.

You don't happen to know the link to any of these studies, do you? I'd like something to point to when people (esp. GF) try to tell me I'm weird because I prefer to drive with the stereo, phone, and passengers in the "off" setting...

[bcj]

This thread inspired me to turn the G-on finally. Never bothered with it since I bought the car.
Doesn't tell you which gear until after you let the clutch out. Well, isn't that special.
That option will likely go back into the box.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by bcj

This thread inspired me to turn the G-on finally. Never bothered with it since I bought the car.
Doesn't tell you which gear until after you let the clutch out. Well, isn't that special.
That option will likely go back into the box.

When I set mine up I sat there with the clutch in for about a minute going "sonofabitch still didn't work".


It was fun to play with for a few minutes but there really wasn't any practical application for me since when it wanted me to shift and when I actually do were worlds apart.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by bcj

This thread inspired me to turn the G-on finally. Never bothered with it since I bought the car.
Doesn't tell you which gear until after you let the clutch out. Well, isn't that special.
That option will likely go back into the box.

I agree ..... I got enough people/things telling me what to do when I'm driving ...... wife ....Siri ... Garmin girl ......



humfrz