I've always claimed (to myself and others) that one of my greatest skills was the ability to pull the important information about a project --the information I needed to figure out what to do next--out of a conversation or meeting. I did that partly by observing what other people thought was important and partly based on whatever experience I had on the topic. While taking the next step I would often find an issue that I missed but I would cover that through more conversations or meetings.

I think that strategy can be effective in companies like Widgets where there were some superior people in the meetings and my projects were basically repetitive, but it's not really a reliable, repeatable method.

Using what I've learned in my classes at Lawyer's R Us and because of the requirements of a particularly insistent senior project manager, I'm learning to be more active in the project process. For example, I'm working on
- creating goals for meetings,
- anticipating what issues might come up in meetings and which can/should be deferred,
- paying VERY close attention to what's going so I can steer the discussion toward the meeting goals or sum up why we can't reach those goals.

Because I'm dealing with all new people and products, I can't rely on my old method. It's hard to change because I'm not a very methodical, detail-oriented person and on the Myer's Briggs scale, I'm barely an extravert.

On the positive side, I have a supportive manager, friendly and very capable co-workers who want my leadership, and a long enough time frame to do the work I need to do. I've been given every chance to succeed so it's entirely up to me to just do it.

Learning and changing. We never stop doing it.