Cross-posted from the Goal Keeping DBA:
In recent days I’ve seen folks jump on Facebook groups and become fans of pages which I know, from a glance, are not what they appear to be. Part of the reason I know they aren’t goes back to my experience as an IT security professional. Part of it goes back to my experience as a web developer. So when I see one of these groups that makes a claim I know cannot be met with the architecture and design of Facebook or Twitter or whatever technology you want to speak of, I know it’s false and that means the group or page has an ulterior motive. But my signals or clues are based on my experience. This is especially concerning for me since a lot of my youth are on these sites and they may not realize a threat for what it is. And that threat could lead to something far worse than a stolen password, a hijacked account, or an infected computer.
So what I want to do is figure out a way to deconstruct those cues so that a regular end user without a security or web development background can learn them and make reasonable assessments themselves. There’s too much of this nonsense going on. And that’s the reason it has made my goal list. I want to figure our how to make an easy to understand, informative presentation with realistic instruction on how to judge potential security threats for social media sites. A presentation targeted not at IT, but at the end user. I know this isn’t going to be an easy undertaking, but I think it’s gotten to the point where it’s necessary.
If you’re interested in collaborating with me, shoot me an email at kbriankelley {at} acm {dot} org
Within a couple of days of each other, both Andy Leonard (@AndyLeonard) and Paul Randal (@PaulRandal) tweeted about possible job opportunities which would entail working with them. Here they are
This got me to thinking about working with/for high caliber folks. Andy and Paul are both SQL Server MVPs. Andy is well-known for his SSIS prowess and bringing design patterns to solutions (translation: he is a true application / enterprise architect). Paul? He only had a hand in writing key aspects of the product and managing other folks who did likewise. Needless to say, working with these two should be like drinking from the firehose, to borrow an expression. I know some probably saw one or both of the opportunities and went, "Dream job!" while others went, "I couldn't handle it!" And I'm sure there were reactions that varied somewhere in between these two extreme views. And as I was thinking, my mind wandered off to Mike Walsh, who used to work for Andy Kelly. Mike credits Andy with teaching him how to be a professional caliber DBA.
I haven't had the pleasure of working for such high caliber folks with respect to SQL Server, but I have in ministry. One of my mentors is Dr. Tom Fillinger, and the years I spent working under him as a children's minister were challenging (in the best way possible). In the SQL Server world it's about knowing your craft well. In ministry it's the same thing. I knew that because that's common sense. But how exactly do you approach ministry, how do you ensure that you do so with standards and expectations, and how do you measure how you're doing, especially when talking about an age group (bed babies through elementary school) where obvious growth tends to show only much later in life, were areas we focused on and dug into. There was also the constant reminder that ministry wasn't just about numbers and results. Yes, those are important. But ministry is about people. It's about caring for them and loving them and encouraging them and finding ways to reach them. And ministry is about what you believe. You have to stay true to that. And while all of that is common sense stuff, it's the HOW that Tom taught me that has been so key to my development in ministry. Quite simply, his example has stood as a constant challenge to reach for. That example, by the way, almost discouraged me from signing on in children's ministry. I could tell right away that Tom was one of those high caliber folks. And so naturally the thoughts of, "Can I do this?" and "Will I survive his expectations?" came up. But I was sure of my calling and sure that this is what I wanted to do. So I became children's minister, grew tremendously, and served in that role until I felt the calling to move to a different challenge.
When it comes to IT, things aren't very different. Most folks, when faced with the prospect of working with high caliber folks, start to doubt. That's a natural response. In Mike's case, he didn't know what he was getting into with Andy Kelly (and here Andy would likely quip, "Does anyone?"). But most folks who would have seen Paul's or Andy Leonard's tweets do know. And it can be very easy to talk oneself out of trying because of the magnitude of the people involved. If that sounds like you, stop it. Working for Tom was the most challenging time in ministry I had at that point in my life. It grew me tremendously to be able to take on youth ministry. When I left the Air Force, that was what I wanted to do: be a youth minister. Now, having the experience of almost 10 years where I wasn't a youth minister, but serving in other roles (mostly children's ministry), I understand I wasn't ready back then. There are days when I doubt I'm up to the task now, but I remember that with Tom, those days of doubt always turned out to be awesome learning and growing experiences.
This is the way it is when you work with high caliber folks, regardless of the field. But we have a tendency to let the reputation discourage us. That's the wrong attitude. The right attitude is to look at the opportunity for what it is. Yes, it'll be hard work. But approach it right and it should be a time of solid growth. Even taking the interview (since only one person will get each job) should be a learning experience because it shows what they are looking for which you don't know. And that tells you what to go look at in more detail if that's the field you wish to continue in. That's useful information if you want to grow your career. Also, these opportunities also represent chances to build relationships with these kinds of high caliber folks. During the time I worked with Tom, I had the opportunity to build a solid relationship with him. I still seek him out for advice quite frequently. If you get the job with a high caliber person, use the time wisely to not only learn your craft better, but also to build a good relationship with said person. Even after you both have moved on to other opportunities, the relationship should still be there.
Oh yeah, and lest I forget, working with a high caliber person can teach you to be a high caliber person yourself. A lot was made out of how, during the Olympics, Kobe Bryant showed others, like Carmelo and Lebron, how he worked and how he pushed himself. In football the same was said about Jerry Rice. In baseball it was Nolan Ryan and his bucket of rice. You see how they work. You see how they process information. You see what makes them high-caliber. And that should give you ideas of how to be likewise. I know Tom's example challenges me every time I sit down with a theology book or every time I try to think of a new idea for a ministry I'm a part of. That's what high caliber people do: they continue to challenge you to be high caliber like them. And that's yet another reason to want to work with or for them.
Tuesday night I was having a conversation with my younger son, whom we call Turtle. It's a nickname that came from missions camp, because of his great love of turtles. For my oldest son, we told him that when he hit age 12, he would need to pick a musical instrument and this would become part of his homeschool curriculum. He chose the guitar, and so now we refer to him as Guitar Boy in public posts. My oldest has worked hard, taking weekly lessons and practicing nearly ever day. And when I say practice, I mean he is investing a lot of time and effort into it. He wants to master classical guitar. Part of the reason is we didn't dictate what instrument he would learn. We told him to pick the instrument he wanted to play. We've done the same thing with Turtle. His choice is coming up as he is 16 months younger than his brother.
Now Turtle does a lot of things off the beaten track. That's the way he is wired. So we went through a lot of instruments on-line, watching performers on those instruments, so he would get some ideas as to what he might want to learn when it is his time to choose. Among those we looked at were the double bass, pedal steel guitars, dulcimers of various types, Chinese and Japanese bamboo flutes, the koto, and, of course, bagpipes. The picture here is of The Citadel pipe band, who will be returning to the Edinburgh Military Tattoo this summer to perform (as part of the combined Citadel Regimental Band and Pipes). Unfortunately, I arrived at The Citadel one year too late to go the first time, but being a member of the Regimental Band and Pipes has left me with a love of bagpipes. However, Turtle has pretty much ruled them out. While I would love for one of the boys to learn them, if it's not their passion, I am not going to ask them to do so.
My wife and I had a long conversation about what instruments for the boys to learn a while back. We're both flutists. We both played french horn in high school as well. I learned trumpet, too. But our primary instrument is flute. If it were what would be easier for us, the boys would both be learning flute. Failing that, they would be on french horn. But I know what it's like to try and play an instrument that's not your passion. When I first started on flute, I hated it. For me, what changed my attitude was a book of sheet music with Japanese folks songs. Playing through the songs and being able to recreate the same songs that I heard around me constantly (we were living in Iwakuni, Japan at the time) changed my heart towards flute. I saw a lot of other friends who never grew to have a passion for the instrument they were assigned. They no longer play. As a matter of fact, most dropped out at the end of junior high school. So we came to the decision that the boys would pick their instruments, we would find them instructors, and we would encourage them and help them with the music theory aspect of learning how to play their horn (or guitar, as is the case with Guitar Boy). Turtle is undecided. He's leaning towards guitar, like his brother, but the decision will be his and his alone.
When it comes to what we do, we need to find where our passion is. I love SQL Server. That's why I chose to step back from an infrastructure architect role to become a DBA again. Active Directory, Citrix, and virtualization is great. Worrying about enterprise security? Not so much. I like to sleep at night. Tinkering with hardware is fun, until you have a whole batch of servers have the exact same motherboard issue and you've got development teams and end users all screaming about the fact that their servers are down and you're waiting on the vendor to bring parts on site. Bad queries? Fixing data models? Yeah, those are headaches. And they can be just as big of a headache as the other cases. But because I love SQL Server, that's just part of the fun. I know, it may seem crazy to describe troubleshooting poorly performing queries as fun, but that's what passion does. It turns what is drudgery and pain for another into something that is, well, fun, for the one who has a passion for that field.
When it comes to IT, there are so many things to do, so many technologies to work with. The thing is to find what you're passionate about. If you don't have the skill set for it, build yourself up. Take baby steps if you need to do so. Look for opportunities in that area. It's better to work in your passion, where it doesn't seem like work, then slave away at some area which you hate. Even if that other area pays a lot better, it's just not worth it in the end.
Back a couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of participating in a Pain of the Week webcast with Kevin E. Kline on SQL injection. The webinar archive is now online if you didn't get a chance to view it live:
Quest Pain of the Week Webcast - SQL Injection - February 11, 2010
One of the things I talked about was how attackers will use search engines to try and locate targets. This is typically known as Google Hacking and the guy who I most know for this is Johnny Long. He has a Google Hacking Database online.
Today I'll be tagging along with Kevin Kline for the Quest Pain of the Week webcast. We'll be talking about SQL injection. The title is:
Understanding and Preventing SQL Injection Attacks
The webcast will be at 11 AM Eastern Time / 8 AM Pacific. If you register, you'll also have a chance to win a prize.
This past weekend I was at the Columbia Code Camp, which was a rousing success with 6 tracks, a number of great speakers, and 165 attendees. This despite freezing rain and losing some speakers from North Carolina due to the weather. I was a volunteer and speaker (last minute on this one, to fill a slot for a speaker we lost due to the inclement weather), and I wanted to write a little about why volunteering for a Code Camp or SQL Saturday may be a rewarding experience. I've come up with four things I think one gains by volunteering. They are:
Free Training
The purpose of a code camp or SQL Saturday is to provide free training to IT professionals. They do tend to occur during the weekend. And if you're not a volunteer, it's easy to find a reason not to go. But when you're a volunteer, you know folks are counting on you, so you feel an additional responsibility to show. And once you get on-site, you get to attend the sessions during the time you're not volunteering. For instance, this past Carolina Code Camp I was able to hear great sessions from folks like Andy Kelly, and Jim Wooley. If I hadn't had to present, I would have been able to hear Alejandro Mesa's session, but alas it was at the same time as mine. I was proctoring the second of the two SQL tracks, or I would have made sure to hear John Welch, whose sessions were all in the first track. And all of this is provided FREE! You can't beat that.
Meeting People
Code Camps and SQL Saturdays are a great way to meet new people, people with like technical interests. Because of SQL Saturdays I've met folks like Jack Corbett, Rachel Hawley, Chris Rock (the .NET guy, not the comedian), Kevin Kline (the SQL guy, not the actor), Stuart Ainsworth, and Robert Cain. I've met folks like Alejandro at code camps. I've been able to build upon pre-existing relationships with guys like Andy Warren, Steve Jones, Brian Knight, John Welch, and Andy Kelly. They are real people, not just SQL and .NET gods, and you get to interact with them in the flesh. This is worth the time, in and of itself.
Learning How to Run Your Own
The Columbia Code Camp was run by Bobby Dimmick and C# MVP Chris Eargle. Chris has been to a lot of Code Camps and he had learned a lot about how one should run. Bobby is a naturally smart guy with a flare for organization and administration. Together they made a great team. One example of where previous experience came into play is the giving out of SWAG at the end. Chris found a neat application that automated the raffle drawings. It was originally in Ruby but he got permission and converted it to .NET. That thing probably saved an hour. Previous experience had shown him the need for one. By going to the other code camps, Chris was in a good position to help get one going in Columbia, which was nice. It's nice to do these local.
I need to say that if you've never run your own and you're not surrounded by folks who have run or been a part of conferences before, it can be a daunting task. When I first reported to the USAF, I was thrown into the middle of what was then called the Air Force Small Computer Conference as the special assistant to the conference chairman. A week long conference that averaged 3,500 attendees. There was a lot to do, from running down notepads (with a really nice organizer with it) that had to be put out to bid, to replacing a keynote speaker when HP's CEO pulled out, to handling the mess that was initial on-site registration once the conference began. But it prepared me well. The next year, I was co-chair of it and we renamed it the Air Force Information Technology Conference (AFITC). That year we had 5,000 attendees, video teleconferencing of keynotes, including a VTC session in to the conference attendees from then Secretary of the Air Force, Dr. Sheila Widnall, from her desk in Washington, D.C. I also participated in the next three on the technical side of things. Each time I volunteered, I was better equipped for the next one. And having done a big conference like AFITC, helping out with the Columbia Code Camp wasn't very stressful at all.
Learning Something More About Yourself
Every time I volunteer, I learn something more about myself. This particular time around I was less hands on and served more to assist Bobby Dimmick with questions and advice. Most of the time I was just a sounding board as he worked through issues that always come up in the planning for these types of things. That was a new role for me. I learned a lot more about listening to others and about the importance of letting folks work through some things on their own. I've always been in the midst of things, especially with the AFITC. Hands-on, immersed, with a ton to do and not a lot of time to do it. We always were scrambling. Planning for an AFITC began even before the current one concluded. We would start a week out setting up the site. And it seemed like there were always things to have to do the Sunday before with early check-in or Monday when the conference spun up. It was a great chance to watch a smart guy work through what needed to be done, come up with his own solutions, bounce them around a bit, and then see him execute. I know Bobby learned a ton and we're already talking about whether or not we can finally bring a SQL Saturday to Columbia, or perhaps even to Myrtle Beach, as Andy Kelly posed. We'll see.
So if you've not considered volunteering, please do. It's a great experience. You'll learn a lot, and not just in the sessions. You'll meet great people. And most of all, though I didn't list it as one of the big four, if things are done right (and even if they aren't), you should have a lot of fun. It takes a lot of energy, but at the end of the day, you get a huge sense of accomplishment as the event rockets through to completion. Find one near you, volunteer your time, and make yourself available, even if it's a stretch for you to do so. It is likely an experience you will enjoy and grow from.
We're making a final push to let everyone know about the Columbia Code Camp 2010, which happens tomorrow, January 30. It's being held in downtown Columbia, and there are 6 different tracks, including 2 SQL tracks (yes, 2 SQL tracks at a code camp). From the SQL Server side speakers include myself and SQL Server MVPs Alejandro Mesa and Andy Kelly. If you're anywhere near the area and want free training on .NET, mobile (including two BlackBerry sessions), and/or SQL Server, come on over and see us. More information can be found on the web site:
http://columbiacodecamp.com/
Paul Randal started a meme about three life changing events that brought him to where he is today. Brent Ozar tagged me, so here's my story of how I came to be a DBA.
Introduction to Computers
My introduction to computers started way back in 3rd grade. A group of us third graders got to over twice a week to the 4th-6th grade elementary school and participate in an accelerated class called Excels. And the school had recently acquired a brand new TRS-80 like the one to the right here. Naturally, we were among the first kids to get to play on it. And there I was introduced to BASIC and realized I had a knack for programming. Every time they rolled that computer into the classroom, I was the first one on it. Actually, I was usually the only one who wanted to jump on it, which suited me just fine.
From there I went to take a BASIC programming class where we were coding on VIC-20s. I moved on to C-64s, Apple IIs, and Ataris. This led to a computer competition in 7th grade where we were coding on Atari 800 XLs. By 9th grade I was writing door programs professionally for BBSes. We also ran a BBS that flipped from Wildcat! to Spitfire to TAG. And thus I entered into the computer profession as a professional at the ripe old age of 14.
The Air Force and Expectations
As a sophomore at The Citadel I had come to the determination that I wanted to serve in the US military. I was already in Air Force ROTC and there was a chance to pick up a full technical scholarship to try and secure a technical slot as an officer. So I took the appropriate steps, got the scholarship, and signed on with a contract. Air Force officer training typically happens between sophomore and junior year. I went to Sheppard AFB in Witchita Falls, Texas. For four weeks I went through officer training. But it wasn't easy. Far from it.
On day 2 I injured my shoulder. I later learned (while at training) that I had partially dislocated it and had damaged the soft tissue in the shoulder. It was so bad that I was ordered to begin physical therapy while at training. But my orthopedic surgeon cleared me to remain at camp to complete the course. The camp leadership, however, seriously wanted me to go home. If it hadn't been for the intervention of a sergeant who realized they were cutting some corners, I would have gone home and ended up repeating the next summer after having completed the bulk of the hard stuff.
In my mind, I couldn't go home. I was still able to function, and therefore, I should finish training. This is the mindset I learned as the son of US Marine. This is the mindset that was reinforced in me as a cadet at The Citadel. If you get hurt, even while at training, but you can go, you go. You don't get a do-over during a real operation. So that's what I did. For this mindset, I received comments like "Showed gross poor judgment for remaining at camp despite a serious injury." I was furious. When the Marines (father and uncle) in my family found out, they were furious, too. This experience jaded me towards the US Air Force. I honored my contract and did my four years, but over time I saw a big difference between the mentality I had of how the military is supposed to be and how the unit I was assigned to functioned. I was in a staff type unit and I had received orders to another staff type unit. How I gone over to an operational communications squadron, I probably would have remained with the US Air Force. But I didn't. I had four years of more of the same experience as I did at officer training and I wasn't looking for anymore. So I separated from Active Duty.
The good news is that during those four years in the US Air Force I continued to code (even though officers with a programming background and a programming specialty (AFSC, Marines and Army call it MOS) were no longer supposed to code... another reason I got so jaded). I learned ASP, got really familiar with IIS, NT, and, of course, SQL Server.
For Lack of an M. Div.
Another reason I separated out of the US Air Force is I wanted to serve as a youth pastor somewhere. I had done youth work under my church's youth pastor and when I broached the idea with him, he thought it was a great idea. I was hoping to go back to Columbia, SC, land a position, and go on to seminary at Columbia International University. I had some folks trying to help me do just that, but it didn't work out.
There were two strikes against me. Because I hadn't received my first call to a full time position, I hadn't being ordained (this is typically how it is done in Southern Baptist churches). I was looking for my first full-time position. No problem, a lot of churches said, if you have a Masters in Divinity, you're all good. But that meant I would have been completed seminary. Which is what I was hoping to get into and earn my M. Div. I couldn't get my foot in the door. Things would have been different had I been a graduate of a Bible college with a ministry related degree. But I was a graduate of The Citadel carrying a physics and a mathematics degree. So no one was willing to even interview me.
Facing the fact that I needed a job, in order to feed my family, I went back to IT. I was hired on as a system administrator working primarily with NT 4. However, when I got to the job, our help desk system reeked. We couldn't find tickets. The interface was terrible about that. We couldn't track tickets that originated out of Columbia. But the database back-end was SQL Server 6.5 and I had read/write permissions based on how the application worked. So in a short time we had an ASP based web site that let us track everything. And a lot of groups started getting really scared because we were suddenly calling about tickets that had sat in queues for months. They knew the system wasn't so great and that tickets would easily get lost. And they were using that fact. And then Columbia somehow started to track down its tickets. It's amazing how things turned around.
From there I went on to another job as a web developer, which turned into a senior DBA position, which led to the systems and security architect position. A year ago I had the opportunity to go back and focus on SQL Server again as a DBA. I jumped at the chance. And that's where I still am today.
Tagging:
Jack Corbett, you're up. You too, Mike Walsh. Marlon Ribunal, I think you'll fill out the list nicely.
When I first reported to my duty assignment with the US Air Force, there were 3 sergeants in my shop. One was away on a special project and I wouldn't see much of him for the next six months. That left a staff sergeant I'll call James and a technical sergeant I'll carry Harry. Those weren't their real names, but they'll do for this post. If you're not familiar with USAF rank structure, a technical sergeant outranks a staff sergeant.
I come from a Marine dependent background. My father and one of his brothers, the uncle I was closest to, were both retired Marine enlisted. And I had heard numerous stories of dumb things new officers did thanks to these two men. As I approached graduation from The Citadel and pinning on my new second lieutenant rank, those stories only got worse. Finally, there was a break as my dad gave me some plain advice, "Find yourself a good staff NCO, tell him you know you need help, and if he believes you and he's a good NCO, he'll help you." For those not from a military background, NCO stands for non-commissioned officer and is generally used to mean anyone who isn't an officer. In the US Marine Corps, once one attains the rank of staff sergeant, he or she goes from being an NCO to a staff NCO. The US Air Force doesn't have that clear distinction, but I knew what he meant.
So naturally, when I got to my base and checked into my shop, I talked with both sergeants. I wanted to find a good NCO who could help me navigate my initial time with the US Air Force so I wasn't your stereotypical "butter bar." In talking with both James and Harry, it became apparent very quickly that Harry didn't want any part of helping anyone else. But James threw his arm around me and said, "Don't worry, Lieutenant, you stick with me and I'll take care of you." And James was true to his word. Even though we both changed shops during my four year tour, for the three and a half years James was still in, he looked in on me. If I didn't know the best way to approach something, I could ask James. Don't get me wrong, I had peers and more senior officers I could talk to, too. But for those I came into contact with a lot, James had more experience, especially when it came to the way the US Air Force and specifically my base worked. Plus, there's a different point-of-view from the enlisted perspective. And that view is valuable. So I found myself talking to James a lot over the years. And I was better for it.
Now for those keeping score at home, technically as an officer I outranked both James and Harry. But from an experience perspective, I started with virtually none. We often think of mentors as being someone who is higher up on the chain, but that's not always the case. I know that I learned a lot about the right way to do things and about leadership from James. The way he talked about taking care of those he supervised, the way he prioritized different tasks based on the real mission, and the way he looked to preserve a balance between mission and people (mission is always first, but you've got to try and take care of your people or you won't have anyone left for the next mission) was demonstrated in real life, in front of my eyes. When I had to make certain decisions about my own duties, about how to approach something, James always had solid advice for me to consider. He was also very willing to say, "I don't know," when he didn't know something. James was a great mentor for me. And I'll always respect him for it and be in his debt. When I am mentoring someone else, I try to take the same sort of approach James did with me. He had the right attitude and the right heart. I want to try and do the same.
But before I close the post, there's another guy in the story, and that's Harry. Harry wasn't interested in helping anyone else. He outranked James and had been in longer than James. I would be working more with Harry over time, and Harry knew it. So it was actually in Harry's best interest that I do the best job possible. But Harry only cared about Harry. I never saw him extend a hand to anyone else unless he was ordered to. Sad, I know, that he had risen to the rank he had (and he would be promoted further) with that kind of attitude. Harry was probably in the best position to mentor a young lieutenant, especially in that shop. But his attitude prevented him from doing so. I've seen folks like Harry over the years and every time I do, I shake my head. Yes, it takes time and effort to be a mentor. Yes, sometimes someone you're mentoring will let you down. But when you get that person who is eager to learn, willing to try, and wanting to get better, all that time and effort is worth it. James understood that. Harry didn't.
So if you're looking for a mentor, make sure you find not only someone who can help you grow, but someone with the right attitude. You want someone like James, who will throw his arm around you and say, "If you stick with me, you'll be okay," and means what he says. It's not just about who should be the most capable. It's also about whether or not the person is willing. And if you want to be a mentor, remember that your attitude is part of being a good mentor. It's not just about knowledge transfer. It's also about caring for your protégés and wanting to see them grow. You have to have the right attitude to be a mentor.
When we first started Midlands PASS, we tried to do it the way PASS suggested. We tried to get folks together to work on a set of bylaws, and the first try floundered. Myself and one other person attending the first organizational meeting. Needless to say, we tabled the effort until we could get more people to help. A year later, with no group around, folks remembered that I had originally tried to organize an effort but they hadn't seen a group. They asked if I would try again. So I did, but I didn't repeat the same mistake.
Instead of conducting an organizational meeting to work on bylaws, I worked on them myself. I called the organizational meeting, indicated it was more of a meet and greet than anything else, and we had a good number (for our area come out). We were able to validate the bylaws and elect officers right away. And we ran like for that the next couple of years with one slight hiccup in between. That hiccup was officer election. Basically, no one wanted to run who wasn't already an officer. So that left a couple of us holding two offices in order to make it through the year.
Midway through that second year, Andy Leonard came to speak. He also happens to be our regional mentor. He took the time to really hear out our pain points and he offered some suggestions. They were:
I'd like to say we jumped on his advice and did everything right the next meeting. We didn't. Some of these issues we're still struggle with. So let's look at each in turn.
Formal Structure:
We didn't start to go less formal really until about a third of the way into this year. That's nearly nine months after Andy gave his advice. The writing on the wall was in January when we tried to hold formal officer elections again. Basically, if you showed up, you got an office. Our bylaws also said a person could only serve in a role for two years before he or she would have to step down. Everyone looked at me and said, "You need to be president." At which point I said, "Oh, no you don't! The bylaws say I have to step down!" To which point they did the motion thing and next thing I knew, the bylaws were changed. And I was president again. So much for formalities.
So we're approaching when we should be doing elections again. But given then elections have not worked, and a lot of user groups around us are running fine without them, I think we're going to suspend things with regards to that. If one of the current officers wants to step down, we'll try and adjust, but it just doesn't make sense to try the formal approach when really people just want a place to get together, learn some SQL, trade some stories, and be a part of something.
Volunteers:
We've done a better job here, and that's because it started with the folks who showed up for elections this past January. We had needs, we laid them out on the table and we said, "We need your help. Would you consider serving in these areas?" Those new guys stepped up, three of them. They have been invaluable. There's no other way to say it. We were down to two returning officers, with a second one having to step down due to work responsibilities (traveling consultant based out of Charlotte). And throughout the year they've come through. Now it looks like we've got another one on board. But I've still got a long way to go to understanding how to get folks to involved. This is one of my weaknesses.
A Feeling of Belonging:
We've tried to work on this, making sure out meet and greet time starts early and lasts a good time. The officers make it a point to talk to everyone and to introduce new folks to the other members. If we find common points of interest, we try to get people talking to one another. We've done this a bit better, but we still need to work on it. Part of it is having a lot of operational folks, some of whom can't make two meetings in a row due to work. Others are about just having a better plan for getting folks together.
Advertise, Advertise, Advertise:
This we've done a ton better. We have a site thanks to PASS. We advertise there, on Twitter, through emails, through Community Megaphone, and on this blog. My work has a lot of IT folks (for Columbia) and I post flyers there. As a result we've been able to keep up numbers, even as we've seen turnover in the members. There are some regulars who have been with us all along. But we've lost quite a few folks due to the mortgage market imploding and two organizations employing DBAs going bankrupt. We've picked up folks from new organizations that we didn't know had database folks. So advertising has gone well. Of the list of four things Andy gave us, this has been our best effort.
Midlands PASS is a small user group. We average about 15 people coming to meetings, which is good for Columbia, but still puts us in the small user group category. Having a small user group can mean some challenges, and that's what I'll be blogging about over the next few days. Probably the biggest challenge we face each month is with getting speakers. We've had a great cast of speakers. Among the MVPs we've been able to line up in person:
We've had other great speakers who weren't MVPs, like Paul S Waters from our sister group, SQL Server Innovators Guild and folks from the SQL Sentry team. So it's not a bad list considering we're small and most folks have to travel to get to us. We're working on getting remote capability, something I'll address with our host for the coming year. So that list is comprised of those who have been able to find time to travel to our little place in the world. So what have we found that works? I'll give five rules that we try to follow.
Rule #1 - Don't Be Afraid to Ask
A lot of the folks I asked outright, "Hey, we're small, but you've got something to offer, can you come out this way?" And I have been continually amazed at the positive response from folks. My rule is the worst that anyone can say is, "No." If that's the case, then we move on and try someone else. Not everyone can get here or would want to get here, but we'll take quality speakers that do want to.
Rule #2 - Look for Piggy-Back Scenarios
We were able to get Brian and Andy because they had work in our area. Both were teaching classes locally so we worked our schedule to accomodate them. There have been some others who have come down our way, like Jessica M Moss and Jonathan Kehayias, but their schedules didn't permit it at the time. Jessica was neck deep with a client and Jonathan was going through the Army drill instructor course at Fort Jackson (Free time? You must be kidding). However, I've asked (begged) that if they are ever this way again, would they consider speaking at Midlands PASS. Again, the worse they can do is say no.
Rule #3 - Talk to Your Fellow User Group Leaders
Paul S Waters leads SSIG. Page Brooks and Chris Craft lead the Pee Dee Area .NET User Group. We were able to hook onto John Welch thanks to Peter Shire of the Charlotte SQL Server User Group. Peter also help us get hooked onto Kevin Kline's "Carolina Cruise," so we had the privilege of hosting him. And actually, I got in contact with Andy Kelly thanks to Peter as well. So maybe this should be, "Talk to Your Fellow User Group Leaders and Peter Shire." You can't go wrong with that.
Rule #4 - Let Your Members Do Some Legwork
One of our members had a connection with Wayne Snyder and ran down the details of getting him to come and speak. Sometimes your members will have connections you don't. If they can use those connections to get a great speaker, let them run with it. We had a dynamic presentation to Wayne, and our largest user group meeting ever. So this is a testament to what an individual member can do for the group. You don't have to sit in a leadership position to make a difference.
Rule #5 - Use Your Sponsors, but Be Careful
Peter Shire also works for SQL Sentry. And I will tell you that as a user group leader I always want to make sure that a vendor coming in doesn't give a sales pitch. The SQL Sentry guys are great. They come in and they lay down some real knowledge. They'll take five minutes at the end to show how one of their products addresses the pain points that they just got done talking about. But it's not a hard sell. And you leave a whole lot more knowledgable about SQL Server than their product. I don't know if that's a great marketing angle on their part, but I'm glad they take the time to come out to user groups and present on SQL Server, not on SQL Sentry. Likewise, Kevin Kline came and gave a great presentation on query performance. Yes, he works for Quest Software. Yes, Quest sponsored the meeting. And yes, Kevin used Toad and mentioned why he like what Toad did in a few cases. But they were relevant to the discussion at hand. And when you left the meeting, you learned a little bit about Toad but a whole lot more about SQL Server. These are great examples where vendors have helped us without doing the hard sale.
Now this isn't to say we haven't been burned the other way around. We have. We had some very heavy vendor pitches when we first started out. So now we make sure that a vendor understands that if they're coming in, we expect to hear about SQL Server, not their product. If they can't agree to those terms, then we don't want them. And this is a hard and fast line we've stuck to.
The short answer is that's where my heart has been. I write because I feel compelled to write. I don't write to put my name in lights, to secure that next gig, or to blow my horn. I write because I can't see myself not writing. But that's not the complete answer because I've not explained why my heart has been about writing on non-technical matters. The longer answer is community.
Professional Association for SQL Server
One of the things I realized leading up to the PASS Summit is that while I've been a participant in the community, I feel like I can do more in helping the community grow. Unfortunately, due to life circumstances I wasn't able to make the Summit, but I had a lot of time to reflect on how encouraged I am whenever I see someone come to the forefront and do something really neat. I think about the 24 hours of PASS, for instance, and the folks who provided some great sessions for the rest of us. I think about Tom LaRock staying up and keeping a running commentary going. Stuff like this wouldn't be possible without contributions from folks like Rick Heiges.
But they can't do it alone. In the aftermath of some great discussion over the nominees for the Board of Directors, it became very apparent that quite a few of the volunteers of PASS put in a ton of effort. They are shouldering the load for this aspect of the community and they can certainly use some help from the rest of us. So I want to help the community grow. I want to encourage new faces to get involved. I benefit. They benefit. We all benefit.
Drawing Inspiration from Others
Brent Ozar is a very knowledgable guy. Not just about SQL Server, SANs, and virtualization, either. He blogs a lot about career development, setting goals, and self improvement. One of the main reasons I frequent and refer to his blog posts so much is that there is a lot of great advice and wisdom written in. It shows that he's not just a tech junkie, but that he wants to grow the community. And growing the community is more than just about data types and best practices. He's not the only one, mind you. Spend a little time looking at the blogs of the community, participating on Twitter, and you'll see there's quite a few folks passionate about helping others.
I've Been Examining Myself
Part of this is due to conversations I've had over the last year and a half with Andy Warren, Mike Walsh, Jack Corbett, and Paul Nielsen. Some where in person, some were over the phone, and some were via email/twitter. But basically they boiled down to where do I see myself, what will the cost be, is it worth it, and what are the alternatives. Paul reaching out was especially humbling. He saw something I had said on Twitter and asked to talk on the phone, to share similar experiences. Here was a guy in the community of whom I had a great deal of respect for, who I didn't know personally, taking the time to listen, encourage, and share some wisdom. And it wasn't about SQL Server, either. That example really demonstrated that if someone as busy as Paul can make the time for guys like me, then I can make the time for others, too.
Going Beyond the Technology
After real life intruded on me and my wife, it was amazing how many folks stepped up and provided support, compassion, and sympathy. I've never been afraid to respectfully share my faith, and it was very humbling to know that some of the folks I really respect took time to let me know through various means that they were praying for my family. While I could mention a lot of folks, I'll mention two specifically who checked in on me constantly in the weeks following: Steve Jones and Andy Leonard. There is a reason they are community leaders. They care about people.
I'm reading As Iron Sharpens Iron, which is a classic book on Christian mentoring. Written by Dr. Howard Hendricks and his son, Bill, the book is split into two parts. The first part is for the one who wants to be mentored (also known as the protégé). The second part is for those who are or might serve as mentors. I started it yesterday so I'm still in the protégé portion. As I was reading yesterday, I came across five key ares that Dr. Hendricks lists that are essential in a protégé for most mentors. If a protégé doesn't have these qualities, there's not a whole lot a mentor can do, which amounts to a waste of time and energy. Those five qualities are: A protégé must be goal-oriented. A protégé must be looking to improve and grow. A protégé must be an initiator, taking action on his or her own accord. A protégé must be eager to learn. A protégé must be responsible and accountable for his or her own development. All of these are common sense, but let's look at each briefly. Goal-Oriented: If you don't have goals, you aren't going to go anywhere. It's hard for a mentor to help someone without goals. How do you know you're moving that person in a positive direction? How do you measure impact? And if a would-be protégé doesn't have goals, what's to stop said person from spending effort in one direction one day and in a totally different direction the next? So if we're looking to be mentored, we really need to know what our goals are (like here from Tom LaRock). Otherwise we're wasting our mentor's time in addition to our own. Growth and Improvement: Protégés must have goals that lead to growth and improvement. If your goal is to stay out of sight and not do a whole lot, there's not much a mentor can do to help you. This gets into those kinds of things like, "Where do I want to be when I'm 50" types of discussions. Mentors are going to look to get the most out of their time and effort. So if someone isn't looking to grow and improve, why would a mentor waste the time with that person? That person can stay the same perfectly okay without a mentor. For instance, if Andy Warren can look to grow his networking skills, then we all can work on something important in our lives. Being an Initiator: When a mentor invests in a person, that mentor expects the person to heed the advice given and do something about it. For instance, if Brent Ozar says, "You really need to read this book," there's a reason he thinks you need to read the book. It has some impact on the mentoring he is trying to provide. He can't read it for you. You've actually got to go get the book and read it yourself. That means you need to initiate some action in the mentoring process. You can't sit back and be passive. Then you won't accomplish your goals. Eager to Learn: This is something I beat into the heads of my junior high youth all the time. If you come to me and tell me you're doing terrible in math and then when I ask you about the subject you respond with, "I hate math. I hate doing my homework," my next question is going to be, "Yeah, I could have guessed that. But did you put the time in to actually do your homework and understand the concepts?" And if you come back with, "Didn't I say I hate math?" then what you're really telling me is you have no desire to learn the subject. Hate it or not, you've got to be willing to learn it. You'll likely do a whole lot better if you change your attitude and want to learn. Case in point: look what Jack Corbett did with a little mentoring because he wanted to learn how to do something in Powershell. Being Responsible and Accountable: No one is going to do the work for you. It doesn't work that way. And no mentor is going to be perfect about seeing you grow. You've got to take charge of your own growth and development. You can't depend on your employer, the community, or your mom and dad to ensure you have opportunities to increase your knowledge and skills. If you are serious about improvement, it's on you to make it happen. Mentors and others can help along the way, but final responsibility and accountability are on you. As Steve Jones points out, with the resources available (especially in the SQL Server community) there's no excuse for not improving. What I take from this list of five is that if I want to be mentored, I've got to be a good protégé. That means I've got to demonstrate these qualities. If I don't, I'm just wasting time and energy. Not just mine, but my mentor's as well. To make the most of a mentorship, these five qualities should describe me.
I'm reading As Iron Sharpens Iron, which is a classic book on Christian mentoring. Written by Dr. Howard Hendricks and his son, Bill, the book is split into two parts. The first part is for the one who wants to be mentored (also known as the protégé). The second part is for those who are or might serve as mentors. I started it yesterday so I'm still in the protégé portion. As I was reading yesterday, I came across five key ares that Dr. Hendricks lists that are essential in a protégé for most mentors. If a protégé doesn't have these qualities, there's not a whole lot a mentor can do, which amounts to a waste of time and energy. Those five qualities are:
All of these are common sense, but let's look at each briefly.
Goal-Oriented:
If you don't have goals, you aren't going to go anywhere. It's hard for a mentor to help someone without goals. How do you know you're moving that person in a positive direction? How do you measure impact? And if a would-be protégé doesn't have goals, what's to stop said person from spending effort in one direction one day and in a totally different direction the next? So if we're looking to be mentored, we really need to know what our goals are (like here from Tom LaRock). Otherwise we're wasting our mentor's time in addition to our own.
Growth and Improvement:
Protégés must have goals that lead to growth and improvement. If your goal is to stay out of sight and not do a whole lot, there's not much a mentor can do to help you. This gets into those kinds of things like, "Where do I want to be when I'm 50" types of discussions. Mentors are going to look to get the most out of their time and effort. So if someone isn't looking to grow and improve, why would a mentor waste the time with that person? That person can stay the same perfectly okay without a mentor. For instance, if Andy Warren can look to grow his networking skills, then we all can work on something important in our lives.
Being an Initiator:
When a mentor invests in a person, that mentor expects the person to heed the advice given and do something about it. For instance, if Brent Ozar says, "You really need to read this book," there's a reason he thinks you need to read the book. It has some impact on the mentoring he is trying to provide. He can't read it for you. You've actually got to go get the book and read it yourself. That means you need to initiate some action in the mentoring process. You can't sit back and be passive. Then you won't accomplish your goals.
Eager to Learn:
This is something I beat into the heads of my junior high youth all the time. If you come to me and tell me you're doing terrible in math and then when I ask you about the subject you respond with, "I hate math. I hate doing my homework," my next question is going to be, "Yeah, I could have guessed that. But did you put the time in to actually do your homework and understand the concepts?" And if you come back with, "Didn't I say I hate math?" then what you're really telling me is you have no desire to learn the subject. Hate it or not, you've got to be willing to learn it. You'll likely do a whole lot better if you change your attitude and want to learn. Case in point: look what Jack Corbett did with a little mentoring because he wanted to learn how to do something in Powershell.
Being Responsible and Accountable:
No one is going to do the work for you. It doesn't work that way. And no mentor is going to be perfect about seeing you grow. You've got to take charge of your own growth and development. You can't depend on your employer, the community, or your mom and dad to ensure you have opportunities to increase your knowledge and skills. If you are serious about improvement, it's on you to make it happen. Mentors and others can help along the way, but final responsibility and accountability are on you. As Steve Jones points out, with the resources available (especially in the SQL Server community) there's no excuse for not improving.
What I take from this list of five is that if I want to be mentored, I've got to be a good protégé. That means I've got to demonstrate these qualities. If I don't, I'm just wasting time and energy. Not just mine, but my mentor's as well. To make the most of a mentorship, these five qualities should describe me.
Cross-Posted from A Goal-Keeping DBA blog:
I'm reading Getting Things Done because of Brent Ozar's excellent blog post, How I Use GTD 50,000 Foot Goals. I'll post a review of the book later, once I've finished, but as I'm working through it, I have seen some things that have made me stop and think. One is what David Allen refers to as "the zone," something athletes sometimes enter into. It's a moment of total clarity where you can focus on the job at hand. Given I've talked from time-to-time about being a goalkeeper, let me talk about a time when I found myself in "the zone."
One of the hardest part of a goalkeeper's job is to take penalty shots. Especially when those penalty shots are at the end of regulation and any overtime periods and those penalty shots will decide the game. It becomes a one-on-one game with whoever is taking the shot. Truth is, the odds are against the goalkeeper. While the margin of error for the shooter can be rather small, the fact of the matter is there are a couple of places a shooter can place the ball, and if there's any kind of pace on it, the goalkeeper is beat. There's simply nothing the goalkeeper can do about it. Here are four places:
It doesn't even have to be a hard shot. It just has to be a good, solid shot. And what makes matters worse is goalkeepers will typically cheat to one side or the other and jump at first contact. When they do that, a good shot with a bit of height right up the middle will score easily, too. But given all that, a goalkeeper is passionate about making that save. After all, one clutch save can mean a win. One botched save will usually mean a loss.
So it's all about getting into "the zone." Here's what it's like for me. My knees are slightly bent. My arms are loose and a bit in front of me. I'm on my toes. I'm leaning slightly forward. I'm watching every single step of the approach that the shooter makes. I watch the plant foot. Is he heavy on it? Where is it pointing? What are his hips doing? Do they give anything away? And then, the foot that's going to make the shot. How is the foot angled? Where on the ball is it going to strike? Is it going to hit dead center or off to one side? Is he going to strike low (giving it lift) or is he going to strike just under middle (meaning a low shot)? Is he hitting with the laces (harder shot, but less accurate) or with the side of the foot (not as hard, but some shooters can have deadly aim). What about his forward arm? Where is it pointed?
All of that gets looked at in just a couple of seconds, including the approach. Any little thing that can give me an edge, a guess as to where he is going, I try to use. There are two school of thought to goalkeeping. Pick a side and dive or try to read and dive. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. The first will get to more balls than the second. The second may pick up a tendency which will lead to a sure dive (or no dive, if the ball is coming back up the middle). I was taught and trained on the second method. And if I want to have a real chance of picking up and processing all that information, I have to be in "the zone." Everything else fades away. I don't hear any noise. I don't see anything else but the shooter and the ball. I don't even have a sense of where the posts are on the goal. None of that matters. I'm solely focused on that ball and how it is being struck. And then I reach for the save.
But when it comes to other aspects, outside of sports, getting into that zone is hard. Sometimes it seems downright impossible. There are so many things going on in my head, that it means I am not as efficient as in tune as I could be. So I understand what David Allen is talking about. And I see that is one area where I definitely need to work on with regards to life, work, and ministry. I've been in that zone before, especially when I was primarily a developer and could go heads down. It's harder as an architect or a senior DBA. So many things and people are competing for your time. I've just got to do a better job of being organized and making choices on the front end, something I'll look at in my next post on this book.
The Midlands of South Carolina will be hosting a Code Camp on January 30, 2009. You can register as an attendee, submit a session, or sign-up to volunteer here:
Columbia Code Camp 2010
The Code Camp is being run by the Columbia Enterprise Developers Guild, our .NET sister guild here in Columbia, SC. This has been a couple of years in the works, so I'm looking forward to being there. If you're within traveling distance, I heartily encourage you to make the trip on Saturday to it. Since the work is getting out over two months ahead of time, there's plenty of opportunity to plan to attend!
