Topic Teasers Vol. 53: Make Your Point With 'ilities'

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  Quality  

This is a small company and I’m very lucky. Rather than just having a project dumped on me, my boss typically describes what he is thinking about doing and he asks my opinion. The problem is that I don’t know how to evaluate his project ideas quickly and I don’t want to give him wrong advice. How can I hold a meaningful conversation without looking stupid?

A. Ask to take the idea back to your desk for a week or so. There you can confer with other employees and do additional research on his idea before you give him your response.

B. The Ilities are the group of mythical Greek women who protected Homer and saw to it that he won every battle. Use the story of the Greek heroes, who found courage by relying on the idea of protectors backing them to mentally allow you to gain the confidence to discuss the project ideas.

C. The responsibility for choosing projects belongs solely with your boss. Tell him that you are flattered that he has asked your opinion, but you feel that your role is just to fulfill the project requirements he sends to you in writing.

D. There is a list of quality checkpoints called the “Ilities”. They are also useful when evaluating a project at conception to see if it is worthwhile to pursue, or if it should be dropped.

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