I just think of them as funny snapshots where someone has taken the the time to “caption this photo” in an interesting way that makes me laugh. You can see various examples pinned to my pinboard “I was entertained” on Pinterest.  Considering that the memeverse has contributed to many moments of laughter which brighten my days, I decided to make a contribution of my own. Today at Taco Bueno a lady smiled at me in a way that made me do a double take.  Granted, she worked there, but the intensity of her smile and direct contact left me wondering. During lunch today I created a meme featuring Fry from Futurama with his “not sure” face to honor all those moments I faced this confusion in the past and while likely face in the future. Check out my first meme:

Meme: Not Sure Fry of Futurama – Not sure if flirting or just being polite.

For this year’s conference we decided to work with an inversion concept that illustrates the  importance of the ability to assess threats on campus. The design uses a contrast of darkness and light to highlight imbalances in the perception of threats.  Yellow appeared the obvious choice for the accent, because it exemplifies the “proceed with caution” approach we desired and flows well with both black and white color schemes.  The cover photo  for the brochure features a character in a dark hood,  who might be considered  a threat. The next photo, from the inside cover, features an alter ego photo of the exact same model, this time with no hood, surrounded by white. This begs the question of which if any of the characters is a true threat.

I won’t go into too much detail on the presentation, as Dr. Lee Bird is the expert in the areas of threat assessment and risk management. Her presentation promises to captivate and educate those in attendance. To accompany the brochure for this project, I also revamped the OCHE website, changing it’s color scheme and graphics from the usual Oklahoma blue to a black/grey combination to match the conference materials. I used Adobe Photoshop, Dreamweaver, and InDesign from the Adobe’s CS5 master suite to complete this project.

Click here to view the final OCHE 2012 conference brochure in PDF format or visit ocheonline.com to see the redesign of the website.

According to professional career coach Melissa LLarena, most employees spend too much time focusing on the situation, rather than the more important actions and results. After reading her article, I began to think about how often this is the case when problems arise in the workplace. It seems that a lot of time is spent discussing a problem with little time devoted to discussion of actionable items and even less time with whether or not the actions taken are producing the desired results.

If something is worth the frustration of discussing over and over again, then isn’t it also worth taking the time to devise a solution? If we do not take the time to become results-oriented, then how can we say we are displeased? If we continue to discuss it, then based on our actions, one might surmise that we actually love the problem we are facing. After all, in some instances,  it is the only thing we keep discussing.

For these reasons, I believe we should take on the perspective of the interviewers. Instead of having a S.T.A.R. focus, we should take on a R.A.T.S focus. By inverting the acronym and placing results first, we gain a compass which will prevent us from getting lost in the maze of misery and over-analysis.

For more information on the S.T.A.R. method, please view the video below and read the full article by Melissa Llarena on her site by clicking here.

The first step in planning a project is to gain a clear understanding of why and what we plan to do. Visual communication tools are no longer an optional for those who wish create a clear understanding of the aforementioned elements. Just the other day I sat through a PowerPoint presentation in which a student used one slide to relay three minutes of comparative financial data. Without the visual element, I felt lost in a maze of math, money and methods of  market capitalization.

This experience combined with the growing complexities of project management at my day job prompted me to rethink the way I have been presenting data. I decided to increase the use of visuals to improve the clarity and quality of information. I started by reviewing some of the best diagramming software on the market. I knew I needed a quick, user friendly solution.  I was very excited when I saw that Microsoft Viso was ranked at the top of many software review lists because I am familiar with the Microsoft suite and could get a copy installed on my computer for free as a part of a business license agreement.

The reviews hailed Microsoft Visio as both user friendly and fast. They were right. In a matter of minutes (33 to be exact), I learned to use the software well enough to generate a chart of my office’s operations. Check it out below.

Click here to see more on how Microsoft Visio enhances project management. 

My recent travels on the “interweb” (Tracy Jordan, 30 Rock) have introduced me to a presentation software which actually  appears to be a legitimate replacement for PowerPoint. Sliderocket is a hosted presentation software, which allows collaborative development, but won’t make your clients sea-sick like Prezi. I designed my first Sliderocket in 15 minutes for a last minute presentation that desperately needed visualizations to keep people on track. Below you will find my second attempt at using Sliderocket. I devoted a full 45 minutes of my weekend to this bad boy to give a brief overview of the services I provide at my day job. My hope is that you will find this virtual presentation informative and a little more  interesting than my laundry list of  ”other duties as assigned”. Turn up your speakers. This has sound. 

Best,
Millard B. Latimer II

If you think you are beaten, you are.
If you think you dare not, you don’t.
If you would like to win but you think you can’t;
It’s almost a cinch you won’t.
If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost.
For out in the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow’s will;
It’s all in the state of mind.
If you think you’re outclassed, you are.
You’ve got to think high to rise.
You’ve got to be sure of yourself,
Before you can ever win a prize.
Life’s battles don’t always go to the
Stronger or the faster man.
But sooner or later, the man who wins;
Is the man who thinks he can!

~ Walter D. Wintle

I was very excited when Dr. Dunham gave me the details of the project. The Centre for Global Competency had acquired a booth for the annual Creative Oklahoma Conference. This year Dr. Dunham wanted to step it up a notch (which is usually the case) and create a walk through booth.  We settledon Pink Displays for the vendor and I began designing a huge 8′ x10′ display. In my years of graphic design experience I have designed vector based designs which have been larger than this, however this was a bitmap design requiring the use of photos. The difference is that vector based graphics can be blown up to any size without losing quality, whereas bitmap designs have a finite number of pixels and the larger you make them, the lower the quality of the final image.  In other words, I couldn’t just draw my way out this situation.

All in all, this ended up being yet another fun experience. We created a 10 foot back drop,  36 inch banner,  and matching 2-panel brochure to go along with the design. In a few weeks I’ll have pictures of the real. In the meantime, check out the mock ups.

10×8 backdrop

A few weeks later I received a call from Leon Fowler, the COO of Valiant Services, LLC. He was buzzing with enthusiasm about an idea he had on how to help the students of KIPP Reach. His idea, inspired by viewing a piece on the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant, was to provide backpacks to the students of KIPP reach. I immediately contacted Dr. Quintin Hughes of Ph.D. Enterprises (Ph.D. Entertainment) who poured over with enthusiasm about the idea. We eventually received approval from KIPP Reach and Tracy McDaniel even agreed to speak at our upcoming discussion forum Truth Be Told Live! which takes place on the last Thursday of every month from 7pm-9pm at Urban Roots in Oklahoma City, OK.

For those interested in making a donation and engaging in stimulating conversation, I invite you to join us on Thursday,  Jul 28, 2011 at Urban Roots. Below is a list of items which we are collecting for for KIPP Reach. For more information on KIPP, please visit kipp.org.

5^th Grade
Student Supply List
2011

Reminders-

• All supplies can be purchased at the Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Family Dollar, or Wal-mart.  All of these items will be on sale during the back to school sales that start at the end of July and early August.
• Every student is required to have two sharpened pencils, paper, and class binder for every class period of the day excluding Physical Education.
• ** these supplies will need to be replenished.
• * binder may need to be replaced second semester
• NO PENCIL SHARPENERS ALLOWED

6^th Grade

Student Supply List

2011

Reminders-

• All supplies can be purchased at the Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Family Dollar, or Wal-mart.  All of these items will be on sale during the back to school sales that start at the end of July and early August.
• Every student is required to have two sharpened pencils, paper, and class binder for every class period of the day excluding Physical Education.
• ** these supplies will need to be replenished.
• * binder may need to be replaced second semester
• NO PENCIL SHARPENERS ALLOWED

7^th Grade

Student Supply List

2011

Reminders-

• All supplies can be purchased at the Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Family Dollar, or Wal-mart.  All of these items will be on sale during the back to school sales that start at the end of July and early August.
• Every student is required to have two sharpened pencils, paper, and class binder for every class period of the day excluding Physical Education.
• ** these supplies will need to be replenished.
• * binder may need to be replaced second semester
• NO PENCIL SHARPENERS ALLOWED

8^th Grade
2011 Student Supply List

Reminders-

• All supplies can be purchased at the Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Family Dollar, or Wal-mart.  All of these items will be on sale during the back to school sales that start at the end of July and early August.
• Every student is required to have two sharpened pencils, paper, and class binder for every class period of the day excluding Physical Education.
  • ** these supplies will need to be replenished.
  • * binder may need to be replaced second semester
  • NO PENCIL SHAPENERS ALLOWED