100 Secrets

You have to perform at a consistently higher level than others. That's the mark of a true professional
--Joe Paterno

When you come in to work, are you working a job or are you working your career?

I've met many people in IT and there are those people that strike you as a Pro and others that strike you as a Joe. Now, there's nothing wrong with being an average Joe, per se, but is that were you want to be?

About 10% of the people out there in the IT world are "professionals". These are people that love what they do and would probably do it whether you paid them or not (ironically, this usually means they are paid even more than the average Joe).

About 80% of the people are "Joes". These are the folks that come in to work, do their job, then head out when "the whistle blows."

The remaining 10% are people that ended up in IT because they thought they could make some easy money, the employment numbers looked good, that was the only thing their government retraining dollars would pay for, or maybe their Uncle Buck told them "the future is (hushed tone...) INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY". Since you're reading this, I'll assume you aren't in this category.

So, what separates the Pros from the Joes?

Professionals are all about the work, quality, improvement, exceptional results, and peformance at consistently higher levels than your average Joe. Pros read about IT, study their craft, study their industry, stay on top of new innovations, weed through the cruft to find the useful new technologies while avoiding the fads, and go at their job like it really matters. A Pro could be described as "living to work".

A Joe is all about following the rules, putting in the time, trying not to get yelled at by anybody, getting by, and getting paid. Joes avoid reading about their industry, use down time to "play a quick online game, or two", and can tell you more about their favorite game/sports team/hobby than they could about the latest technology. A Joe could be described as "working to live".

So, take a look at what you do and how you do it. Are you continuosly learning? Are you maximizing your knowledge? Are you trying new things? Are you doing things on your own, without being told? Are you failing, once in a while? Are you owning your job?

If so, maybe you are headed in the right direction.

"What's the difference between ignorance and apathy? I don't know and I don't care."
--Anonymous

Is it better to be efficient or effective?

Let's start with some definitions (from Webster's):

Efficient:
1 : being or involving the immediate agent in producing an effect
2 : productive of desired effects; especially : productive without waste

Effective:
1 a : producing a decided, decisive, or desired effect
1 b : impressive, striking
2 : ready for service or action
3 : actual
4 : being in effect : operative
5 : of a rate of interest equal to the rate of simple interest that yields the same amount when the interest is paid once at the end of the interest period as a quoted rate of interest does when calculated at compound interest over the same period

cognitive dissonance: psychological conflict resulting from incongruous beliefs and attitudes held simultaneously.
--www.merriam-webster.com

If you've read my other segments "Make your mistakes faster" and "Have the Appropriate Level of Terror", you might be wondering how I could logically hold these two opposing views at the same time. Am I just suffering from cognitive dissonance or do I have a legitimate point?

The answer is pretty simple, if you dig into the meat of my arguments and look at the timing of each...

"Put it up to eleven."
--This is Spinal Tap

If you want to be successful in IT, one of the most important attributes you can maintain is to have the Appropriate Level of Terror (the acronym is ALOT).

What I mean is that there are many things you will do in IT, such as software projects, server hardware upgrades, or management presentations, that demand you feel a high degree of terror.

How can terror be good? Well, it injects your body full of handy hormones and neurotransmitters like adrenaline that will heighten your senses, improve your reactions, and even help you see things you might not otherwise see. Terror will cause you to double and triple check your work. Terror will help you come up with alternative and fall back plans. Terror keeps you focused.

Terror in some people can cause them to freeze or stiffen. Don't be one of those "fainting goats" that topple over at the slightest sound--that's not what I'm talking about...

To be a leader, you have to make people want to follow you, and nobody wants to follow someone who doesn't know where he is going.
--Joe Namath

One of the key aspects of leadership is the ability to create, and share, a vision.

A vision is a picture of where your group is headed. What are you trying to create? Why does your group exist? Where are we going?

"You cannot surround yourself with the smartest and most talented people and then start looking over your shoulder or behind your back, worried that somebody smarter or better might be on your heels."
--Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DreamWorks Animation SKG, as quoted by The New York Times

Whether you are a one-person show or a large IT organization, you'll find youself having to hire or contract additional labor.

One of the most important secrets to success is to hire people that are not only talented, but more talented and smarter than you are.

Here are some quick tips on how to avoid common mistakes people make when trying to get hired for an IT job...

I love talking about nothing. It is the only thing I know anything about.
--Oscar Wilde

When you don't know what you're talking about, it's hard to know when you're finished.
--Tommy Smothers

When dealing people, I always try to leave things in such a way that they are glad they talked to me.

Sounds a little egotistical spelled out like that, but I'm serious...

This really happened to me...

[User] (a nurse, calling my office for help) You have to get over here right away and fix this computer.

[Me] What's wrong?

[User] (getting madder) I don't know. You're the expert. Get over here.

[Me] Can you tell me what you are having problems with?

[User] (angrier) The computer. It won't even turn on. I keep pressing the "on" button and some green lights come on, but it isn't working. Look, I'm a nurse and I'm really busy and I don't have time to fool around with this. Just get over here and fix it.

[Me] Could you take a few minutes to answer some questions? It might be a simple problem.

[User] No! Get over here. Now.

[Me] OK. I'll be there in 30 minutes. I have to get a spare computer and monitor and drive on site.

[User] Whatever. (phone click)

(25 minutes later...)

[Me] (out of breath from hauling computer and monitor up 3 flights because the elevator was taking too long) OK, can you show me the problem?

[User] Yeah. Look, the screen's black.

[Me] (pressing the "on" button on the monitor) Looks OK now.

[User] Oh... (mumbles something incoherent and probably unrepeatable)

If you are in IT, you may have worked on, and definitely will end up calling, a Tech Support help line. If not Tech Support, then at least customer service.

Here's my advice: always, absolutely always, be nice. In fact, be nicer than nice.

Sometimes you have to be firm, but always be nice. Some environments make it difficult for the service people to really help you, but it usually isn't the person you are talking to's fault. If you need something, be resolute, but always be nice...