8+ Practical Tips for Avoiding Pickpockets

A week or so back, I was in Amsterdam and my phone was stolen from my pocket on the street.  I'm usually very cautious, wary, etc. when I'm in an area known for pickpockets, but I let me guard down for a few minutes and paid the price. 

With that in mind, here are some good general tips to protect yourself from pickpockets. 

1. Be an informed visitor.  You can usually find out if the city you're going to is known for pickpockets with a quick search of the internet. Searching for "pickpockets <city name>" will usually let you know pretty quickly.  I already knew Amsterdam was known for pickpockets, since I used to live in The Netherlands.  Other cities that are infamous for this are Rome, Barcelona, Prague, Madrid, Paris, and Florence.
2. When you go out, only take what you need.  Leave your passport, spare credit cards, and other belongings in the hotel safe.  I usually only take some cash, and an "emergency" credit card with me and lock the rest away (along with my iPad, computer, camera, etc.)
3.  Put the things you do take with you in a front pocket or a hidden pocket.  It is much harder to get things out of your front pocket without you noticing.  Also, if you just have the cards and some cash in your front pocket, it is much less conspicuous.
4. Avoid walking into or through crowds.  This one can be a challenge sometimes, but avoid crowds where you can - inside a crowd, people can rub up against you easily, and you can't tell what they are doing.
5.  Try to blend in.  Pickpockets are on the lookout for people who look like they are lost, unfamiliar with the area, etc. so avoid looking at maps, wandering around in a confused or disoriented way, or other things that would indicate you are a tourist.  This includes trying to dress in a way that is consistent with the locals, if at all possible.
6. Don't talk to strangers.  If someone approaches you to engage with you, be very wary - they may be trying to distract you so that an accomplice can grab your goodies while you aren't paying attention.
7. Consider carrying a "decoy wallet."  I have a friend who carries an old wallet in his back pocket with some old hotel room keys (they look kind of like credit cards) and a few $1 bills in it.  He keeps this in his back pocket as bait for a pickpocket, and follows the guidelines above.  I don't know if it works or not, but it seems like a plausible idea.
8. Know what you have, and have a backup if you can.  Make sure you have an accurate inventory of what you've taken with you, even if you plan to lock it in your room safe.   I have scans of the front and back of my credit cards, my passport, and my drivers license in an encrypted file on cloud storage (I use 1Password for this) so I can get to it from anywhere.  This tells me what I've lost, what number to call, and provides me with a "punch list" of the things to cancel or have replaced in the event they get stolen.
   
   Along these lines, also make sure you have information on whatever electronics you're carrying - serial number, make & model, IMEI number if it's a phone, etc.  It is also a good idea to permanently mark your gadgets with your name if you're comfortable with doing that.

OK, OK...I knew all of this.  So what did I do wrong?  In hindsight, I violated rules 3, 5 and 6.  

• I violated rule 3 by letting my guard down and putting my phone in my outside jacket pocket for easier access.  
• I violated rule 5 by looking at my phone periodically to make sure I was on the right street using Google maps.  This probably made me stand out as a tourist. 
• I violated rule 6 by talking with someone who was asking me a bunch of questions, and I foolishly engaged with him (he turned out to have a couple of nearby accomplices that I didn't notice at first and who were smooth enough that I didn't think of them til later).

Rule 3 is probably what did me in, though.  Had I kept my phone in my right front pocket (as I usually do), I don't think they'd have gotten it without me noticing.  As it was, they got my phone, which I noticed about 5 minutes later but they were long gone by then.

By the way, as soon as I got to my hotel I called AT&T and reported the phone stolen and they blacklisted it on their network and disabled my account.  I'm sure glad my phone was locked with a password and had a short auto-lock timeout!

I'm also glad it wasn't my passport or anything else essential.  That reminds me - if you carry your phone with you, make sure you have copies of all your vital information from the phone, so you can re-provision it when you're done.  For iPhones, this means backing up regularly to iCloud or your computer; for Android phones, this means ensuring you're syncing with Google regularly, or using one of the many backup apps available in the Google Play store.

What about you?  Any tips to add or pickpocket stories to share? 

New Help for Old Project Management Problems

Over the years, I've done a lot of jobs.  One thing that's remained constant: Effective project management - especially in a team-oriented project - can mean the difference between success and failure.

Once the project and budget have been approved, the real work of project management begins. Tracking the project tasks and communicating with the team are ongoing efforts that every PM faces. For some time, a PM has had to rely on the same set of tools. With the latest cloud technology, software as a service (SaaS) solutions are available to help the PM stay more organized and connected with the team.

Netsuite

According to PR Newswire, Gartner research states that almost 50 percent of manufacturers will be using some form of SaaS by 2015. Netsuite is a cloud-based resource management system that provides leaner manufacturing and resource planning to stabilize your company. It gives you visibility across the business in real-time. With this level of visibility to the various processes, you have better manufacturing resource planning and management. You can pay close attention to forecasting and inventory management. Netsuite gives you demand planning capabilities to create a more finely tuned forecast. Using sales projections, trends, seasonal fluctuations and historical data, you can come closer to your on demand inventory needs.

Asana

This tool provides a lot of organizational flexibility. The PM has various ways of slicing-and-dicing multiple projects and teams to allow better collaboration and communication. The PM has control over how workspaces, projects and tasks are organized for visibility and easier tracking, according to lifehack.org. Workspaces are work areas that can contain one or more projects and tasks. They can be shared with multiple people. Multiple workspaces may be created to reflect different areas of focus. One workspace could be created for a new-product development effort and another for marketing campaigns for an existing product.

Projects are created within workspaces and can be either public or private. A public project may be accessed by everyone who has access to the workspace, like when you need the entire team to access smaller projects for only a subset access.

Tasks are the work units of a project and they also can be created as public or private. The comment system within tasks allow a greater collaboration between the team members without relying on email. A project history of task communication can be stored this way.

Once a project manager understands how to set up workspaces and projects in Asana, it can become a tool to make collaboration, communication and tracking easier for the PM.

Smartsheet

Smartsheet is structured like a spreadsheet with rows and columns and is flexible and customizable that integrates with Google Docs. This is a good choice for specific project management needs that other solutions don't offer. Spreadsheets can be organized in folders or workspaces. Each sheet can be shared with multiple people. The reporting capability is more than just formatted output. Reports can be made to be drilled-down into or used interactively, such as in what-if scenarios. Smartsheet is supported by a number of articles, videos and tutorials. There are webinars available to learn more about how to customize the product to meet your needs, according to reviews.com.

Google Docs

If you are on a limited budget, or if you need a minimal project and resource management system, Google Docs may have enough capabilities for you and your team. This is a hybrid office automation system with word processor, spreadsheet, graphics capabilities and the ability to collaborate on documents. While not organized specifically for the PM, the pieces manage a small project. Just don't expect automatic Gantt chart creation or resource leveling across tasks, according to lifehack.org.

Project managers have dealt with tools that came out 20 years ago or more. Even updated, they don't take advantage of the features that the cloud offers. These tools give the PM more flexibility and choices on how to set up and manage their projects.

​Those are a few options, in a nutshell.  If you're using something different that you absolutely love, or you have real-world feedback on any of these options, please leave a note in the comments..

Pack a sport coat, suit coat, or blazer without wrinkling

Last week, I shared some of my tips for packing without wrinkling.  I mentioned the Eagle Creek’s Pack-It Folders that I love, and stated you can use them for dress shirts, pants, and jackets.  That is true, but I stopped using them for jackets in favor of another method.

You see, I am tall, and have wide shoulders, so my jackets didn't fit inside the Pack-It folders very well.  I now use the method shown in the video below.​

This method works very well and I use it all the time.  When you arrive at your hotel, simply unfold and hang the jacket in your closet, and it will look great the next morning.​

​This method has another advantage - if you decide you want to toss your jacket into your suitcase (to be more comfortable on the plane, for example), you simply fold it like this, open your suitcase, put the jacket inside on top of your other clothes, and carefully zip the suitcase shut.  Very simple.

Pack Without Wrinkles - New Updates

Note:  Packing without wrinkles is something I've written about quite a bit, and I wanted to take some time to provide some updates.

As a frequent traveler, I want to share some packing tips that have helped me stay free of wrinkles. I have tried many methods including a classic method detailed on the Men’s Wearhouse site; steaming my clothes in the bathroom on arrival, voodoo, etc. None of these methods quite did the trick, even with wrinkle-resistant clothing (see my note at the end of this article).

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My wrinkle-free status improved significantly recently, when I discovered Eagle Creek’s Pack-It Folders. These are phenomenal for keeping dress shirts, pants, and jackets wrinkle-free in your luggage (they also work with skirts, but I haven’t tried that).

Eagle Creek also offers Pack-It Cubes, which I use for general organization (you’ll see how it all works together to tidy up my suitcase, below).

 The Pack-It Folders come with a sturdy plastic folding board, which has detailed folding instructions printed on it. The diagrams on the board guide you through the folding process, and are very easy to follow.

Folding a dress shirt with the Eagle Creek Pack-It Folder 

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• Start by buttoning a few buttons on the shirt (I button the top, third, and 6th buttons), smooth it out, and place it buttons-down on a flat surface. Then, fold the right sleeve across and fold the sleeve down at an angle, as shown in this picture.
  

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• Next, fold the other sleeve across the folding board, then angle the sleeve down just like you did for the first – as shown here.

• Next, fold the tail of the shirt up to the collar (the board forces you to fold it in the right spot), then flip the shirt over, place it in the center of the Pack-It Folder, and remove the board. You now have one neatly folded shirt.

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• You can fold several and stack a number of shirts (the number depends on the size Pack-It Folder you are using). When you’re done, you place the folding board on top of the whole stack to help keep everything flat.

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• Next, fold the flaps closed on the Pack-It Folder to make a nice, tidy bundle.
  

The Pack-It Folder and the Pack-It Cubes work together to make a very tidy suitcase. And, when you reach your destination, you can unpack and things look almost as crisp and fresh as when you got them back from the cleaners. Click the image for a tagged version of what’s what in the picture.

Note: For maximum effectiveness, I recommend buying wrinkle-resistant dress shirts and pants. I prefer Lands’ End or Nordstroms' line of "Smart Care" shirts as they come in exact sizes and are fantastic when it comes to shedding wrinkles. As a bonus, they are also stain resistant!

Next time, I'll share how I deal with jackets (suit coats, sport coats, etc.)​

The Easiest Way To Improve Your Presentation Skills

​In my line of work, I end up doing a lot of presentations.  I've also studied a lot of information on how to become a better presenter.  A long time ago, I took a class from Distinction Communication, a company that helps people develop more effective presentations (and presentation skills).  Since then, I've taken "refresher" courses from the same folks.  You can find a lot of free, helpful presentation tips and videos on the Distinction site, by the way.

Seeing what you don't see

One of the most effective techniques I learned was to videotape yourself presenting so you can see how you appear in front of an audience.

​I must say, the feeling is both discomforting and extremely powerful.  Not only do you get to hear how clearly (or unclearly) you communicate, you also get to see the nervous habits you don't notice from inside your own body.

For example, you may notice you use a lot of filler words, like "Um" or "Uh."  You may find that you rock back & forth a lot, or don't make eye contact with your audience.  You may also find that you make strange gestures that distract from your content.​

All of these sorts of things are normal but very hard to notice when you're actively presenting.

DIY presentation skills improvement

For a long time, the only time I ever had my presentations recorded was during these training / coaching sessions.  Last year, I realized I could do this kind of "presentation audit" myself pretty easily using tools that were readily available to me.​

If you want to record your presentation, you can easily do it using your smartphone, tablet (iPad, Nexus 7, etc.), or the webcam on your computer.  Lately, I've been practicing my presentations the night before in my hotel room and using my recorded session to identify problems with my presentation.  I find it very helpful.​

​The key is to be in full "show mode" -- from a personal perspective, not just a PowerPoint perspective.  In other words, pretend you have a full audience and present as though it were the real deal, as this will provide the most useful data from which to improve your skills.

It's also kind of fun to keep some of these presentation audits so you can look back and see how your skills are evolving.​