Layne's Lunch

I had the unfortunate opportunity to be in Times Square in New York City on Black Friday 2017.  The details of why I found myself in that crush of people are not important other than to say I had to give up some of my agency to be there.  As I looked around and saw the sea bodies a thought came to my mind that is captured in 3 Nephi 18:31. ". . . I know my sheep, and they are numbered" I have come to know through personal experience with the Spirit that I am known of Him, but as I struggled through the press of people I couldn't help but wonder if he can really know the millions of people on this earth?  How is that possible? As I looked through the cross references for the scripture in 3 Nephi, I re-read John 10:14: "I am the good Shepard, and know my sheep, and am known of mine" This scripture gives us additional confidence that he knows his sheep, but the second part of the scripture causes me to ponder the questions, Do I know Him?.  He he said t

Here are a few of my favorite quotes about reading the Book of Mormon. We live in a time of great trouble and wickedness. What will protect us from the sin and evil so prevalent in the world today? I maintain that a strong testimony of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and of His gospel will help see us through to safety. If you are not reading the Book of Mormon each day, please do so. If you will read it prayerfully and with a sincere desire to know the truth, the Holy Ghost will manifest its truth to you. (Thomas S. Monson, "The Power of the Book of Mormon", April 2017 LDS General Conference) Last April, President Thomas S. Monson gave a message that stirred hearts across the world, including mine. He spoke of the power of the Book of Mormon. He urged us to study, ponder, and apply its teachings. He promised that if we dedicated time each day to studying and pondering and kept the commandments the Book of Mormon contains, we would have a vital testimony of its truth, and

Project Planning and executing.  Why is it so difficult?  To answer this question I went back to my Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) from the Project Management Institute and looked at the process group interaction diagram.  Wow!  If anyone looked at this they would immediately get discouraged.   Have we made it unnecessarily complicated?   This week I have been re-reading the updated edition of David Allen's "Getting Things Done".  It is a fantastic book and I would commend it to anyone.   David Allen’s natural planning model is fairly simple.  It contains 5 steps.   Define purpose and principles  Outcome visioning Brainstorming  Organizing Identifying next actions As I reviewed it again, I started thinking about my own project model.  It took me a few minutes to think through it and capture the essence of it, but here it is, along with a bit of explanation about each step.   My Simplified Project Model (Answer the questions an