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I’m Dan Coyle, a Civil Engineering Project Manager, a father of two wonderful daughters and husband to a brilliant and beautiful pastor. I am an avid mountain biker and love to read. That’s the rosy picture I like to paint…reality is I am trying to be more effective at work so I can spend more time with family.

For the first 10 years of my career I did not see myself as a manager. I graduated with great technical skills and a great resume. I started out as a project engineer and saw myself as a technical expert. When I was thrown into project management I saw it as basically doing the same things I did before, just for more pay. I did not receive strong signals that I needed to operate any differently as a project manager; I wasn’t sent to manager training and didn’t get a new job description. I worked for a number of companies during those 10 years. I got by too long on instincts and luck.

At the end of those 10 years I felt like something was missing. One rare weekend that my wife and kids were out of town I was looking for a book to read. I saw my wife’s copy of Good to Great, by Jim Collins, sitting on the counter. I read the first few paragraphs and was hooked. It spoke to so many of my unstated questions about how an organization should function. I read it in one sitting. From that point I was on a quest to educate myself on how to function effectively in an organization.

My quest led me to Manager Tools. I had never listened to podcasts before, but after hearing the “Show About Us” I was hooked. The Manager Tools philosophy and “how-to” approach just made sense to me. I cant get enough of Manager Tools (well, maybe…I haven’t jumped into the premium content…yet).

I made a career change in 2006. The influence of Good to Great, Manager Tools, and others helped me understand the kind of person I am and the kind of organization I wanted to work for. I was fortunate Kimley-Horn (a Fortune 100 Best Company to Work For!) was hiring in the location my family and I wanted to relocate.

In early 2007 I was asked to supervise 5 staff members (matrix organization). Thanks to having been a regular Manager Tools listener I had quite a bit of preparation for my new role. So far things are going well, as measured by compliments from HR (at which point I gave credit to Manager Tools). I have been doing One-On-Ones regularly. The Feedback Model is working well. I have not mastered Delegation, as measured by some missed deadlines. Always room for improvement.

In retrospect, I came out of school thinking that management was only for the powerful, the political and the charismatic. That didn’t interest me, since it isn’t who I am. Now I know that management is all about effective habits, ethical behavior, and a concern for others. That interests me, since it independent of genetics, and can be learned!

Here’s to learning!

Dan Coyle
2-1-7-9
http://www.linkedin.com/in/dancoyle

peterlevy's picture
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[quote]In retrospect, I came out of school thinking that management was only for the powerful, the political and the charismatic. That didn’t interest me, since it isn’t who I am. Now I know that management is all about effective habits, ethical behavior, and a concern for others. That interests me, since it independent of genetics, and can be learned! [/quote]

So true. We need all potential managers to understand this, and perhaps even moreso, all current managers.

jhack's picture

We each traverse a unique path here, and yet we are all in this together...

Welcome!

John

juliahhavener's picture
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Welcome! I have to tell you, I read this:
[quote]I am an avid mountain biker and love to read.[/quote]

As: I am an rabid mountain biker and love to read.

I hope you find as much enjoyment and support here as I have.

WillDuke's picture
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Great Intro Dan. It's always good to hear about people's success. Kudos to you for taking the initiative to not only educate yourself about management, but to then follow up and do it! Very impressive.

James Gutherson's picture

Great story Dan - wlecome on board.

PS - My machine below 'cept mine is green
[img]http://www.velosite.ru/images/tpics/8/4/9584.jpg[/img]