Continual Improvement

A recipe for continual improvement When I was up in Kansas City last summer for my grandfather’s 90th birthday, I knew I needed some good coffee. I asked around on Twitter, and got a recommendation from a trusted friend - Second Best Coffee. Heading to @2bckc on the recommendation of @Jeremy_Danner. I trust his beer recommendations, and I expect his coffee recs are good, too. — al (@alanbush) August 19, 2016 They absolutely did not disappoint.

February 14, 2017

All Good Things Must End

The next step Last week my tenure at Rackspace ended. I knew - we all knew - that a “workforce reduction” was coming. I didn’t think I’d be one of the nearly 200 local Rackers impacted1. But I was. It was certainly shocking. But I understand and agree with the need to shift resources to the areas of the business that need them the most. I still support Rackspace, and think they’ve got a bright future ahead.

November 29, 2016

How to make Outlook act like Google Inbox

Last year I shared a colleague’s method to deal with email overload. I’ve been using it for a year, and these three simple rules have been a great help for email sanity at work. In my personal life, Google’s Inbox has provided a great way for me to “snooze” email that isn’t relevant until a certain date. This keeps my inbox clean, and prompts me to action at the appropriate time.

October 22, 2016

Improv Your Blog

Thanks for checking out my talk at WordCamp 2016. The slides are embedded below, along with links to the books, shows and classes mentioned in the talk. I’m collecting email addresses to gauge interest in additional content around ImprovYourBlog. If you enjoyed the talk today, and want to receive additional periodic updates from me, please subscribe below. #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; width:100%;} Improv Classes ComedySportz - Use Promo Code improvyourblog to receive $25 off your tuition.

August 3, 2016

Slack is the amplifier, not the problem

Some thoughts in response to a great bit of discussion popping up around Slack, some of the annoyances of the platform, and whether or not Slack is delivering on its promise to “be less busy.” In his post on Facebook, Rob has a valid point. Slack can help you be more productive, but people can make it less so. More specifically, a lack of purpose and direction allows user behavior to wreck the user experience, leading to lower adoption rates, and an inadequate collaboration experience.

May 16, 2016

The (Ongoing) Saga of USPS' Utter Failure

TL;DR: I purchased two copies of a book to send one each to my sisters and their families. I mailed them both via USPS “Priority Mail 3-Day” shipping. My sister in Alaska received hers in 3 days. My sister in Kansas City, MO still hasn’t received hers. as of publication, we’re at 15 and a half days.