Maybe it's little old me, but I was surprised at the very least at the statement: "Having knowledge about the way your business works, the way they use data, or solve a problem, could be valuable in your existing job."

To me, that simply isn't "valuable", it's downright critical. I'm a relative newcomer to the development/DBA world, but I've always taken to heart something my wife tells me over and over: "I don't care how it works, I just want it to WORK and help me get done what I'm tryng to do." End users really don't care if you have a beautiful 4th-normal-form transactional database feeding into a Kimball-style dimensional data warehouse, they just want the sales figures for last quarter so they can get the forecast done for the boss.

People are the ultimate consumers of data. Maybe it's because I'm more of the self-taught "accidental" DBA with a great deal of end-user support experience (both in IT and out) that usually the first thing I ask someone who comes to me with an issue is: "What are you trying to do?" It helps me understand not just the problem, but some of what a person does in thier job and how they do it. It also helps me weed out situations that aren't technology related. I have no problem telling someone that they really have a procedural problem and not a technical one, and nothing I can design will help. Or I may tell them they really can accomplish what they're trying to do in Excel rather than the complication and expense of developing a database (or whatever).

IT in all its various forms, is about one thing: PEOPLE. You can take years and master all the platforms you want, but if you design a solution that doesn't help your users do thier jobs without jumping through hoops, they won't use it. Besides, working on a concrete problem is often a great way TO master various technologies.

It may be a little corny, but there was a movie that came out a number of years ago called "Robots". A phrase repeated over and over in it was, "See a need, fill a need." In my present job, we have several independent systems and I've been working with ways to use SQL Server and SSIS to find ways of cross-checking the data in them because I found so many errors and inconsistencies. My boss - who didn't know I was doing this - actually came to me the other day and asked me to compare certain data across a couple of them. My solution wasn't anywhere near production-ready, but it was far enough along I could hand him a report within a couple of hours. Now we're looking to develop this further and use it on a regular basis to catch these and correct them proactively instead of waiting for a problem to develop.

I realize people work in situations where they may not have this kind of flexibility at work, but I'm certain there are opportunities in the community or elsewhere you may be able to put your skills to work. Working part-time or as a volunteer with a local school, government or non-profit is a good way to get out of the rut and expand both technical and non-technical skills. I'm sure others could come up with other ideas.

I yield the soapbox...