Pradeep Hoskote

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Pradeep Hoskote

I am Pradeep. I’m a PMP certified Project Manager by profession. Outside of work, I enjoy exploring and writing about productivity, leadership and strategies on how to be a better Professional. On this site, I write about things that have excited me, summaries of books that I read, life lessons and experiences that have changed me.

The Playbook - Coach rules for life

The Playbook – Coach’s Rule for Life – Summary + Learnings

Notes / /

Last week I watched a very interesting series on Netflix. This show interviews legendary coaches of our generation where they share some of the rules they live by, which have helped them succeed in their lives and careers.
I found it very interesting, and I could relate to some of my experiences with my career. In some way, a project manager is also like a coach who is responsible for the project’s / team’s success and is dependent on his players (resources) to deliver their best.

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Story

Storyworthy (Matthew Dicks) – Book summary & Highlights

Book Summaries / /

We don’t really need huge events to happen in our lives to tell a great story. The simplest stories are about the smallest moments in our lives and are often the most compelling.The book was highly engaging and has made me capture the tiny moments in life which would otherwise pass by without acknowledging them. Just by applying few techniques I was able to notice better engagement from the audience during meetings and presentations.

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Anger Management

Basic Anger Management for Professionals

Notes / /

Anger is part of human experience and it should not be an obstacle in creating a good life, good relationships, or advancing in careers. Everyone has anger, the only difference is that some people admit to their anger issues, and some don’t. Simple ways to keep your mood and temperament in check is by making sure to get good food (decent carbs, proteins, ), Good exercise (~35 mins), Good Rest (~7 hours ), this by itself should avoid most of the unwarranted behavior. I am grateful to Marlene Chism for her great course on Anger Management which not only taught me the below concepts but also helped me realize things that I could improve when it comes to improving my temper.

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Creating a good and lasting first Impression

Project Manager Lessons / /

For any successful career, building and maintaining a great relationship is critical.For building a good relationship beginning is the most important part where you have the opportunity to make a good first impression.

I always believed this to be important but was hoping someone would give me 5 simple things I could do that would help me do that. I came across a video by Todd Dewett, which had these simple steps.

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Communication Foundations for Professionals

Notes / /

A few weeks back I took a training on Communication Foundations by Tatiana Kolovou, Brenda Bailey (from Kelley School of Business), and below are my notes. A recent survey suggested that “Communication competency” being the single most decisive factor while choosing a manager in most companies! As a project manager, this is one of the key skills one should master to deliver successful projects.

Top 3 Learnings:

  1. Listening takes up ~55% of our daily time and unfortunately across the globe, there is very little training on Listening. Always listen with Ears, eyes, and Heart!
  2. Determine process or product – How you do it vs what is needed? – When I try to explain what is required from the team , I should focus more on the product rather than the process. This is because as a PM I should not expect the team to do things the way I would have done rather be comfortable with their process and deliver the expected product.
  3. When criticized, check your listening bias. De-personalize it, the intent might be that person is venting out and not blaming you for the problem!

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Feedback

5 Tips For Delivering Employee Feedback

Project Manager Lessons / /

As a Project/Program Manager – One of the most common things to do is deliver Team/ individual feedback based on the assessment of the schedule vs the current execution status.
Delivering feedback should be an effective process. Feedback delivered in an unclear fashion can do more harm than good. I have listed 5 tips on delivering effective feedback.

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