Is it really hard?

Is it hard to have a plan, and stick to it? Is it hard to listen to the truly important people? Is it hard to think ahead? Is it hard to do what you said you'd do?

What if it is too hard? What then?

As seen on qdb.us

craig: If Not Me Is Nothing Then Visible = True

craig: my code is getting existential

chagster: thats awful

craig: i hope it's not having a GenericIdentity crisis =\

Learning (and Re-Learning) skills

I spent the weekend working on a new personal web app for myself. It's going to be a recipe repository / meal planner / shopping assistant. I know, big plans.

To do this, I'm digging back into asp.net, C#, and SQL. I have not touched any of this stuff in well over a year, since I left MVI. It took me 3 days to work through a page that lets me enter a new recipe name and tag it with a meal type (dinner, breakfast, snack, etc.) However, I feel like I accomplished something major. I completely set up a SQL database, a .net server, and I was able to tie it together with code that I hope is not to horrible.

I remember some of the practices that my former co-workers and good friends taught me, but actually putting it into my code and doing it right is a different story. I hope to learn some of that again over the course of this project, and really build up my skill set to something approaching total world domination.

I'll hopefully be giving a talk at a user group meeting in a few months that my buddy runs. It'll be about coding HTML with good structure, and how to use the power of CSS to really make a website kick ass. I'll let you know more about it as I go. I'll be posting my thoughts and some samples up here as I work on it.

Oh, and you can read our wedding blog over at http://kristiandjosh.wordpress.com/. I gotta update that too.

Lots sure has happened!

Wow, I just realized how long it's been since I last posted. I am now engaged, our company Prospero has been purchased by and integrated into Mzinga. I am also now thinkingi need to really get into posting again and I need to redesign this blog. Hopefully I follow through on this. Later!

Posted from my iPhone.

Talk amongst yourselves for a moment

When a company is small (<15 employees), people talk to each other constantly, from the CEO on down to the interns. When a company gets larger, the interns may still be able to talk to the CEO, but not as often or easily as when the company was small. Why is this?

I believe that it's a few different reasons, and not just the ones I mention here. When you get a larger company, there are more lines of information to track, more people with different ways of communicating, and more ways for people to get upset. Some of the people aren't going to use the historical method of communication within the company (assuming there's been some stability in that arena). Some people are going to argue that the way people have been communicating is inefficient, which may be true, but instituting a change to "improve" communications may wind up alienating people, or fracturing the communication into a bunch of different methods.

Another side effect of growth is the apparent need to have the leaders in the company stop leading by doing and have them start leading by delegating. This may also create issues in the reasons why things have to be done a certain way. It's much easier to accept difficult decisions when you know the decision maker has to work under the exact same circumstances that you do. When you see your leaders suffering, it can create a kind of camaraderie. It can also create a lack of trust in their ability to lead, but that's another issue to tackle another time.

On the other hand, if you feel like decisions are being made without input from the people in the trenches, and you know the leaders and decision makers aren't doing the work themselves in the environment they create, that can definitely create a rift if there isn't a clear and consistent sharing of information. Typically that happens when management doesn't discuss the thoughts, ideas, and process that went into the decision, and how the decision can affect long term goals. Employees get upset, morale goes down, and a lack of trust in management may evolve.

But what if we turn that on it's head? Employees get upset, but don't talk to management? People talk amongst themselves, grousing, complaining, but never bring the complaints to the leaders. In effect, you get the Dilbert Syndrome. People stop caring, they don't work as hard as they used to, and management gets upset at the lack of enthusiasm from the employees. It's a dangerous cycle, and it can rapidly deteriorate into constant turnover and costs for the company.

How can we break these cycles? I've got a few ideas, but by no stretch of the imagination, all the answers.

1. Managers: Talk to your employees. Constantly. If they have an issue, it is your job to get to the bottom of the problem and fix it. There's always a solution, and always one you and the employees can agree on.
2. Employees: Talk to your managers. Constantly. If you have a problem, it is your job to explain it in as much detail as your manager needs to solve the problem. Be a part of the solution. If you don't give them input on the way to fix your work issues, they may not be able to fix it in a way that you are happy with. And then you have a new issue.
3. Managers: If you are aware of an ongoing issue, and you don't need an employee to come to you to explain it, just fix it. If you need guidance (and there's a good chance you do), talk to your employees to find out what you can do to help. No one is infallible, so by getting their input, you're more likely to solve the issue in a way that makes people happy.
4. Employees: Know that you're not going to be happy with every decision. It's a fact of life. If you were happy with everything that happened to you, there wouldn't be much a challenge to life and work, would there. Boring!
5. Managers and employees: Be honest with each other. Make keeping everyone around you full of information and assistance. This will help you and them stay happy, productive, and will help the company run smoother than it may be right now.

I don't run my own company, but I know that communication is key to things running well. I've experienced the difference on teams that always know what's going on internally, and teams that are run from the top down, without ideas being given a chance and team members not being given any free time or opportunity to self-manage.

Keep talking!

Blogged with Flock

New job, new tech, new thoughts

So I’m really loving my new job. I’ve been there for about 4 months now, and I’ve really dug into the tech we use. I’ve been doing some fun stuff, with some really cool new clients. FOX, CBS, ABC, American Diabetes Association, even some fun Disney stuff.

We’ve got our base technology, which is what our boards, blogs, polls, etc. are built from. We’re now developing some new ways of presenting our data in a much faster, easier to use XML-based code.

I’ve been freaking out the developers a bit, because I keep asking them if we can make the tech do stuff that they hadn’t really intended it to do, but when we talk about it, they realize that it’s not a bad idea to get the code to flex its muscles a bit more. We’re really starting to have some fun with it, and I’ve been experimenting with some ways to use it.

I’ve mainly been using the new tech to build profiles for the boards and blogs, but I’m starting to pull it over to style the boards and blogs now too. An example of the profile can be seen here: My work profile. I spent about 3 hours to code all of the styles I needed to get this to lay out. I can now spend about 20-30 minutes on a profile to get them styled. All I need is a design!

On a somewhat related subject, my boss and other co-workers have started estimating projects based on who is working on it. They actually have estimated in “Josh Time” for how long it would take versus regular time. I am totally going to be using that fact when it comes time to get a raise. I think it counts in my favor, no?

Happy (but poor) customer

So, last night my alternator failed. Just after I got off of Soldiers Field Road — right in the middle of the road. Call Liberty Mutual Roadside Assistance ($4 a year, like simple AAA service), very pleasant service operator. Here’s a rough transcript of the conversation:
Liberty Mutual: Are you and your vehicle in a safe place?
Me: Well, not really, I’m in the middle of the road at a busy spot.
LM: Ok, would you like police assistance? I’ll conference them on the phone.
Me: Great!
(Spoke with the police dispacher, said an officer would be along soon)
LM: Ok, now that we’ve taken care of that, let’s get towing set up. What’s your insurance info?
Me: (gives info)
LM: Ok, hold on a moment. (pause) The service call has been set up. You’ll receive a confirmation call with time estimate from us, and the towing company should also call you.
Me: Fantastic. Thanks a bunch.
LM: Not a problem, call us back if there are any other issues. (End call)

So far, so good. I hear from the towing company (Pro Tech, out of Waltham), they’ll be 20-30 minutes. I’m thinking no big problem, it’s not too late yet, and I’m really close to home, but it’s getting pretty dark, and you can’t see my blinkers very well since the battery is almost dead. Cops should show up soon though.

25 minutes later — No cops. A couple have driven right past me though. Ah, there’s the towing company. Stupid police, thanks, I don’t feel safe, but I guess you’re in a hurry to get to the Dunkin Donuts up the street. We get the car on the truck, he drives it to my apt, drops it in the parking lot behind, we’re good here. I’ll replace the part myself.

Next Day

Well, I went, bought the alternator, went to my dad’s house, borrowed his tools, and came back to Boston and got to work. Crap, I can’t quite get to that bolt. Out to the store, buy another tool, ok, now I can reach it. Crap, I can’t get this thing out, or the new one in. Ok, maybe it’s time to let the professionals have a whack.

I call NTB, they quote me $313 to put in the new alternator (labor only). Um, wow, ok. That’s a lot of money. Let’s call around, ok? Brighton Motor Services, 1/2 mile from my house, $85-$150. Laughs when I tell him about NTB. Promises it wouldn’t be anywhere near that price.

Next, I need to get my car there. I call Liberty Mutual again, and yes, the Assistance program will cover it. Sweet! I get the car to the shop, he takes a look at the position of the alternator, and says “Yeah, it’s definitely going to be closer to the $150 amount.” No problem I say, it’s still a whole lot cheaper than NTB. He said I’d have it back by tomorrow afternoon. I’m excited, and thank him for both the low cost and fast turnaround. His response? “Not a problem. I’d like to keep you as a customer.”

I’m just a Joe off the street, but he treats me as if I’ve been going there for years. It’s family run, him and his dad, with a bunch of mechanics. Small, only 2 bays, but dang, they move fast. I appreciate good service, and it’s definitely a place I will return to. And the gas is inexpensive too. And full serve, for the lazy days.

And did I mention that of the 30 years they’ve been in business, they’ve been members of the Better Business Bureau for the last 18? Gotta love it.