Thanks for the feedback, gbro3n.
I'm too lazy to write a blog post about this at the moment, so here's a quickie reply:
1. An estimate is better than a guess. An measurement is better than an estimate.
Feedback from my mentor at a silly presentation of mine that convinced no one. I added data (as suggested) and it killed.
2. It's never the money. (They will always say it is, but it's not.)
I had trouble selling software. The customer said it was too expensive. That wasn't the real reason. This comment from my mentor taught me to find the real reason.
3. Never let anyone eat your lunch.
From an early mentor who kept noticing others take advantage of me (easy when you're in I.T.) without me fighting back. He taught me that sometimes, going along is worse for everyone in the long run.
4. The best time to turn it on is before it's ready. You'll get plenty of data to finish it faster.
I.T. (in its typical "pass the buck" mode) refused to turn on the Production Work-in-Process module of our ERP system because the base data (standards, routings, recipes, etc.) was so inaccurate and incomplete that "the shop reports would be worthless". To which my mentor responded, "What better way to fix them? The people responsible for fixing the data will be much more motivated because they want better reports." Great advice I've used 100 times since then.
5. The only good Powerpoint slide is evergreen. If it's not, it's already obsolete.
Powerpoint presentations are almost always boring and "powerpointless". UNLESS they're real truth (like most good comedy). The best truths are evergreen. And the slides can be used over and over again.
6. Your positive mental attitude makes up for most of your shortcomings.
From a mentor who saw something no one else saw (including myself). Once I knew "I had PMA", everything changed forever.
7. Learning the difference between an issue and a detail is half the battle.
Almost every corporate dick fight I've ever witnessed was over nothing. Asking the question, "Is this a detail or an issue?" refocused 90% of my attention to what really mattered. And helped me help others do the same thing.
8. Avoid introducing new jargon. It's already hard enough to understand.
I got fancy with new terminology in a sales presentation years ago. It failed miserably. This was why. I'm glad I asked. I've never failed because of that again.
9. Isolate. Isolate. Isolate.
First mentor, our tech lead, about debugging. VERY evergreen.
10. If it's not written down, it's not.
From another mentor. So obvious but so elusive. Born of a stupid argument about building something where no one remembered anything vocalized before.
11. The reason everyone we work for sucks is because those who don't suck never call us.
My cofounder's remark when I was super frustrated dealing with so much suckiness at our customer. Really set me right.
12. If you set aside something urgent to go to Happy Hour, how will our annual report differ? (Hint: It won't.)
My mentor wanted to talk about very important stuff over beers. I resisted. This question was how he got me to see things differently.
Urgent is short-term and tech based. Happy Hour is long-term and people based. Both are necessary.
13. What's the good news? (No matter how bad things are, never hesitate to answer.)
My mentor and boss always focused on the positive, no matter how elusive. I've adopted this philosophy. Sometimes I think that might have been the best thing I ever did.
14. A degree in business is a degree in nothing.
From a professor in my MBA program. Put everything into perspective before I encountered all those silly suits over my career.
15. The answer to any question is "Who wants to know?" (See https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1084127)
See the link. I've been talking about this for years.
16. No project ever dies but many are abandoned.
One of my mentors liked deadlines for simple urgent projects but hated them for complex important projects. Took me a while to grok this, but has become much more important over the years.
17. Self praise stinks!
From my mother when I did my touchdown dance after building something. Great advice (although I still dance once in a while when something works the first time. Sometimes I just can't help myself.)
18. If someone can do something once, they can do it again.
The underlying principle (provided by my mentor) for a cost absorption system I wrote and implemented in a human based production shop. If they're not doing what they have done before, there must be a reason. Our job is to find that reason." This applies to all of us. I've even used it to "debug myself' many times.
19. Almost anyone can do almost anything.
Hard to grok, but so true. The main reason people fail is that they just give up before they succeed. Again, provided by a mention when I was frustrated by junior programmers weren't coming up to speed fast enough.
And my favorite: 20. Ultimately, go with your gut.
Really important for a right-brained person like me. It reassures me that left-brain thinking is not only OK, but often essential.