Steel Kaleidoscopes

London, v.4

After meeting with the lead developer until close to 6, I walk onto Marylebone Street with determined enthusiasm to finally take some time for me -- to enjoy the city.

The discussion was a good one -- scalable infrastructure, common code base, personalization, syndication, global expansion and the benefits of an in-house e-mail management system vs.an ASP model -- but it was time to go.

After splashing some water on my face and brushing my teeth, I head over to Baker Street and buy a one-day Tube pass, which gives me access to London's version of the sardine sandwich. In Boston, people don't appreciate how much space they have on the Green Line during rush hour. This was shoulder rush hour in London -- close to 7 p.m. -- and the Jubilee Line South line was packed.

I do the typical tourist thing and get off at Waterloo Station to see the London Eye and Big Ben. Neat.

The sun is easing into the Thames and I'm standing in the wrong line for an Eye ticket. After checking out the length of the correct line, I choose to walk rather than spin.

Big Ben is amazing. Elementary textbook education come to life. It's just there, no matter where you walk. Parliament is obscenely pristine in his regality and glitter, and Big Ben just stands there, a phallic symbol of our youth yet current in its relevance.

After a healthy walk and many pictures, I return to the Tube and re-emerge on Baker Street.

Then I get lucky.

Getti, a wonderful restaurant on Marylebone, has a just-cleared table on the edge of the sidewalk, premium seating on a steamy July evening. My timing is perfect. The maitre d' asks if I'm alone or if anyone will be joining me. Tonight, I'm alone.

And I enjoy grilled swordfish, green beans, warm raisin bread and a glass of Barbera under a tempered street lamp, passersby eying my enviable leisure expression.

Ah, London.

Nice to spend some time with you.

But I'm ready to go home.

That's where life and love wait anxiously.

London Workday

We're lucky with the weather in London.

Nearly everyone is commenting on the sunny skies and the dry 80-degree temps. Guess we don't get a stretch of weather like this too often.

We work hard during the day, marching to the rhythm of meetings between Chiltern and Marylebone Streets.

We slip in and out of sandwich shops, the local Starbucks and dodge those crazy black cabs zipping down the left side of the street. Still not sure whether or not to look right or left at the crosswalks.

In the evening, we sip dark ales at Gunmakers pub on the summer sidewalk, still basking in the glow of a glorious day. The conversation weaves in and out of office culture and real-life events before we head over to Zizzi for pasta.

The sun sets and the azure sky deepens its hue.

It's getting late and we're ready to retire.

In Boston, they're still at their desks.

Yankee Swap

Chicken on a stick. Swirl the wine. Sip it.

Massage oil.

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas" DVD.

The chicken laying the rubber egg.

A photo ball.

Chocolate.

Dunkin' Donuts coffee.

A self-help book.

Group photo.

A "Family Guy" calendar.

A colorful smock.

Chicken on a stick. Swirl the wine. Sip it.

Prime Times

Twenty-two years ago I was in the midst of a busy time at my first real job.

After doing the deejay thing right out of college and working the overnight in a warehouse doing inventory, I accepted the assistant sports editor position at Prime Times, a weekly newspaper based out of Saugus, Mass.

The office was behind a White Hen Pantry and I worked with some wonderful, wacky people. There was Dick, the classified ad guy, who kept a bottle underneath his desk. There was Betty, who worked in sales, who I think was sleeping with Dick.

My boss was John, who walked with his head so far out in front of his body that I thought he was going to fall over. He loved compiling high school football statistics, and he would call me at 7 in the morning reading from his spreadsheets over the phone so I could enter them in time for publication.

There was Tom, the author, who held a news editor position so he could have an excuse for trying to make a living as a novelist. There was Paul, who loved listening to Squeeze and drinking margaritas after work.

There was Neal, the publisher, who I rarely spoke with since I was a lowly assistant sports editor. He liked to entertain clients and get them buzzed on sparkling wine.

There was Max, a 60-something dude who was just looking for work until he retired. I think his eyesight was bad, because my last memory of Max was him driving the wrong way up an exit ramp after drinking margaritas (he backed up and was OK).

I worked hard. I outworked almost everyone. I used Prime Times to find other newspaper jobs. I got a part-time job at the Woburn Times. I got a part-time job at United Press International (UPI). But I always had my full-time job at Prime Times.

It was one of life's positive experiences.

A rung on the career ladder.

5 Ways to Shine at Work

You go to the office every day. Your colleagues are smart, but so are you. How do you keep your edge?

Here are five ways to stay on top of your game and exceed expectations.

1. Know the business.
How does your company make money? You should understand this. What are your company's goals and objectives? What is the vision? You should be able to describe your company's role in the marketplace without even thinking about it. What do your customers expect? What makes them happy and keeps them coming back?

2. Communicate.
You should be able to articulate your thoughts clearly whether it's in person, on the phone or through email. If you're a manager, this is critically important. Managing up, across and connecting with your direct reports will enhance productivity. Be both proactive and responsive. Ignoring someone's email because they aren't senior to you is rude and disrespectful. Show up to meetings on time and keep your face out of your Treo.

3. Embrace change.
This is 2007. New technologies have removed the barriers of time and space, creating an office of the future that is now. Projects move quickly. Projects change. Plans are scrapped and new ones are suggested. The workplace is dynamic and change is inevitable. Don't get caught flat-footed. Keep up with it. Better yet, stay ahead of it. Keep learning.

4. Shadow a sales or service rep.|
This reflects the importance of No. 1. It's one thing to understand your business, it's another to actually experience the challenges of sales and service firsthand. What are the obstacles your sales force faces? What kind of problems are customers having? By sitting on the front line, you may come up with some ideas on how to improve your product or service.

5. Attitude is everything.
There are enough toxic people in the workplace. Don't be one of them. Come to work each day with a smile on your face and a skip in your step. Be happy. Treat others well. Life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you react to it. Take a deep breath. How you approach your day has a direct impact on others. Especially if you're a manager.

Benjamin Zander

There are a few people everyone needs to meet in their lifetime.

Benjamin Zander is one of them.

The conductor of the Boston Philharmonic is one of the world's most engaging, charismatic speakers and his positive message is an oasis in what can often seem a dour landscape of negativity.

Zander spoke to a mixed audience of Monster employees and customers earlier this week at Boston's Intercontinental Hotel and talked about the art of possibility. In convincing fashion, Zander used a blend of inspirational dialog and classical music to make us believe anything is possible.

His message reflects the best-selling book "The Secret," which illustrates how positive thinking attracts positive results.

Two hours seemed like two minutes with Zander, who taught us how to truly sing "Happy Birthday." He led a sing-along of "Ode to Joy" in German. He played short snippets of Chopin, asking us to think about someone we loved who is no longer with us.

Zander's parents escaped the Holocaust in 1937, which is quite revealing considering the emphasis he puts on singing an inspirational classic in German. Zander is all about forgiveness. Life is too short to hold grudges.

He inspired laughter. He brought tears.  Most of all, he shifted a change in collective attitude, at least for a day.

10 Tips for Attending Conferences

If you work, you will likely attend a conference in your career. If you work hard, you will likely attend many. That said, here are 10 survival tips to get you through the two or three days out of the office and away from home:

1. Bundle up.
Conference rooms are heavily air-conditioned. Even if it's June in New Orleans, pack appropriately.

2. Skip the notebook.
Conference organizers always provide notepads, speaker notes and ample space to comment on the sessions. If you write in your own notebook, you have information in two places.

3. Be prompt.
Your company is picking up the tab. Arrive for the sessions on time.  You'll be glad you did and it shows respect.

4. Turn your ringer off.
There's nothing more annoying than someone's ridiculous ring tone interrupting a presentation.  Use your vibrate mode.

5. Engage.
Make it a point to meet five people you've never met before. Networking evolves one step at a time.

6. Speak up.
If the sessions are interactive, say something. Raise your hand. Speak out. It will keep you engaged with the topic and could help with No. 5.

7. Don't overindulge.
Beer and wine flow at dinner events. Know when to say when. There is an agenda in the morning.

8. Stretch your legs.
There's always some down time. Walk the city. Explore a few blocks. You may have never been here and you may never be back.

9. Go with room service breakfast.
Unless there's more than a continental breakfast provided, hang that order form outside your door and let the egg, bacon, orange juice and coffee arrive before you leave the room. It's your most important meal of the day.

10. Expect cliches.
You know the final speaker of the day is going to say "I'm the only thing between you and cocktail hour," so just go with it. I've rarely been to a conference where someone doesn't fall into this tired cliche.

Have a good flight.

Self-Proclaimed Experts

Why do people love to hear themselves talk?

There is nothing worse than being part of a meeting that deteriorates into a battle of voices, one self-proclaimed expert babbling to sound more intelligent than the next self-proclaimed expert.

And what makes this unbearable is when you add a presentation to the mix. When someone is walking through a deck of PowerPoint slides, why do self-proclaimed experts feel like they need to interrupt to make obvious points?

It's an hour we never get back.

Voice Mails

Is there nothing more frustrating than to sit through a rambling two-minute voice mail where the caller leaves his indecipherable phone number at the end of the message.

"Thanks again. You can reach me at pha-thr-seven-sista-fav-oh-aht."

If you truly need to call this person back, you need to listen to the whole damn message again, poised with pen to decipher the phone number.

Try this -- leave the phone number at both the beginning and end of the message.

And enunciate.

Balls in the Air

This is my day today. And yesterday. And tomorrow.

Keeping the balls in the air so far.

The juggler perseveres.