Dont Settle for Mere Competence Be the Magician
Don’t Settle for Mere Competence Be the Magician! Chris Lawson Oracle. Magician. com IOUG Live! 2002 Paper # 317 6/16/2021 1
Introduction § This presentation explores some of the less-often discussed skills. § These are lessons that you won't find in ANY certification exam! § Emphasis is on real-life strategies for career enhancement. 6/16/2021 2
Session Topics § We discuss 3 ideas for advancing one’s career. – Part I: learning while working. – Part II: putting the users first. – Part III: publishing technical articles and presenting at conferences. § Note that each of the ideas focus on the same principle: providing service to others. 6/16/2021 3
Background § The "best" DBA or developer is smart in many areas. § Being technical competent is not good enough. § There is no shortage of “smart people. ” § There is, however, a shortage of smart people who “put the customer first. ” 6/16/2021 4
Part I: Learning While Working § Questions for the aspiring DBA or designer: – How can we advance our careers while working on the job? – Is it possible to do both? – If so, how? – Doesn’t this really “cheat” our employer? 6/16/2021 5
Learning While Working § It is a continual struggle to keep up with changing technology. § For example, frequent database releases include many new features. § Extra “horns and whistles” to investigate. § How many new features has oracle introduced in Oracle 9 i? 6/16/2021 6
Learning While Working: The Struggle § This struggle is challenging because we must also meet our obligations to our client. § The tension between these two conflicting obligations leads us to ask, 6/16/2021 “Can a software professional keep up with new technology & learn new skills while “on the job? ” 7
Learning While Working: The Answer § The answer is "yes. " § We can keep-up with the latest Oracle releases at the same time as providing good service to the client or employer. § Not only that, but the employer will gain just as much (or more) as the employee! 6/16/2021 8
Learning While Working: The Approach § This idea of "learning on the job" relies on a three-pronged approach: – Mentoring. – Researching. – Documenting. § The allows the employee to learn new skills and be able to become acquainted with new technology. 6/16/2021 9
Not Shirking Our Duty § This strategy has nothing to do with shirking our duties to our employer. § The employer is actually a bigger winner than the employee! § The employer gains the value of having highly skilled workers. 6/16/2021 10
Mentoring § Companies often desire the more senior workers to assist the less experienced. § Senior workers often scorn this mentoring process as a waste of time. § This view misses a big opportunity for career growth. 6/16/2021 11
Mentoring: Who Learns More? § Most teachers will claim that they learn more than the student. § As a teacher, you are forced to understand the material to a much higher degree. § When teaching, you can’t just “get by. ” § Therefore, mentoring assignments should be sought after as a path to career growth. . 6/16/2021 12
Researching § In most corporations, there is a great need for someone to investigate and train others in new technology. § This corporate goal can also be beneficial to the individual. 6/16/2021 13
Researching § Surprisingly, many employees will resist the effort needed to learn new skills. § They will stay in their “comfort zone. ” § Many will let others take the initiative. 6/16/2021 14
Researching § What about the employees who are willing to branch out? What will happen to them? § Most likely, they will gain a reputation as real problem solvers. § They will be the ones that others in the firm seek out for assistance. . 6/16/2021 15
Researching: How to Begin? § Set-aside time for creative brainstorming periods. § Read the documentation that is provided with an application. § By this simple step, it is often possible to become “the expert. ” § Investigate the ideas found in "white papers" on the particular subject being analyzed. 6/16/2021 16
Documenting “Lessons Learned” § While working on a project, make notes of things that have proven of great benefit. § Then, offer to present these findings to your peers in a short mini-presentation. § The firm will clearly benefit greatly from your initiative. § Once again, this is a ‘win-win situation” for both the employee and employer. 6/16/2021 17
Lessons Learned § The “lessons learned” may also be suitable for publication in a technical journal. § The insights can be prepared into a “white paper” for presentation to a larger audience, such as an Oracle users meeting. 6/16/2021 18
Lessons Learned § These types of presentations can lead to a mutually beneficial exchange with other, more senior people in your field. § You may receive emails from people across the world who have read your article. § For example, this presentation began as an mentoring-paper for a previous client. . 6/16/2021 19
Part II: Advance Your Career by Putting the Users First § Help your customers achieve their goals. § The “golden rule” of treating others in the same way that you like to be treated. § Whether a DBA, designer, or developer, we need to remember who our customer is. § Clearly, a company does not exist to support a database, but vice versa. 6/16/2021 20
No “Lone Rangers” § It is simply not acceptable to “work in a vacuum” and ignore everyone else. § As crazy as it sounds, this is a frequent occurrence in the IT world! § This type of attitude is not likely to yield a happy customer. § If the customer is ignored, the solution to his problem will likely be inadequate. 6/16/2021 21
Advance Your Career: Example 1 § DBA listened to the customer, and set out to solve the customer’s problem (DT clear quest). § Putting the customer first led to a satisfactory conclusion for all parties. § The users were happy, plus the company remembered the DBA who went “beyond the call of duty. ” 6/16/2021 22
Putting the User First: Listen Carefully Anyone who wishes to gain a reputation for excellence must start as an excellent listener. 6/16/2021 23
Putting the User First § This means putting yourself in the shoes of your “customers. ” § Try to see things their way. § This step is deceptively challenging. § Few people in any profession have successfully mastered the art of good listening. 6/16/2021 24
Listen Carefully: Example 2 § A “Baby Bell” firm had many irate users. The DBAs never talked to the users! § Simply calling the users and listening to them opened up a new “channel. ” § A big application bug was solved. § Company saved many thousands $$. 6/16/2021 25
Analytical Listening § Many of us have a very difficult time listening to others. § Les Donaldson: “people hear only a phrase or sentence out of context, and jump to a conclusion. This often results in an argument which leaves a poor impression. ” Les Donaldson, Conversational Magic; Parker Publishing, 1981. 6/16/2021 26
Analytical Listening § Analytical listening is the act of trying to see the other’s point of view without becoming “mentally argumentative. ” § This art of listening is extremely rare. § Any engineer who simply listens to a user will create a very favorable impression. 6/16/2021 27
Listening: Example 3 § The greatest “people” consultant in modern history, ” dale Carnegie solved a huge problem with just a rug! § Simply listening to the customer told him what they actually wanted. § It turned out that no one had ever taken the time to listen to them before. 6/16/2021 28
Don’t Blame the User § Another tough “people skill” is not blaming the user. § This is a tough one. DBAs KNOW that users are the cause of the problem! Taking care of the users 6/16/2021 29
Ask for Help If Necessary § Senior DBAs or designers usually find it easy to ask for help. § They don’t let their pride get in the way. § Usually the more junior engineers seem to have trouble asking for help. § Are they afraid that we might “find them out? ” 6/16/2021 30
Some Resources · · · · Metalink or Oracle support White papers on the Oracle web site Fellow DBAs Email discussion lists IOUG-A discussion boards Technical journals such as SELECT Local user groups 6/16/2021 31
Part III: Advance Your Career by Publishing § Publishing is an excellent way to help you organize what you have learned. § Share information with your colleagues, impress your boss, and further your own career. § Plus, it is a lot of fun. 6/16/2021 32
Tips On Publishing § Don’t think that you are not qualified. You all have a story to tell that others want to hear. § You don’t have to have special degrees or certificates, or many years of experience. § Try a local user group first. Editors very much wants to hear from local people. § The disadvantage, of course, is that you won’t get paid for local journals. 6/16/2021 33
Tips On Publishing § Begin by researching journals in your area of interest. § There are probably a dozen or more publications that would publish articles related to your project. § Ask your colleagues what magazines or journals they get. 6/16/2021 34
Examples of Publications · · · Oracle Magazine Exploring Oracle Internals Northern California Oracle Journal IOUG-A SELECT Intelligent Enterprise Software. Mag. com UNIXreview. com Sys. Admin Database Trends and Applications Server/Workstation Expert 6/16/2021 35
Tips On Publishing Articles § Always be looking for ideas to write-up. § If you have spent time researching something, why not document it and try to publish it? § Remember that before submitting for the first time, it is a good idea to have a friend review your article. 6/16/2021 36
Tips On Publishing Articles § Correspond with editors via e-mail. § You will first prepare a “query” to the editor, to see if they are interested. § You can send the query before you have completed the article. § Here is an example of a query to a technical editor. 6/16/2021 37
Sample Query Email (Part 1) I would like to propose an article for Intelligent Company magazine. This article would be a case study on successful implementation of a data warehouse system. This system was built for Digital-Wizard, a San Francisco company (where I currently consult). This project was one of the most successful projects I have been associated with. Given the historic failure rate of data warehouse projects, I think your readers would find this case study very useful. 6/16/2021 38
Sample Query Email (Part 2) This article also matches the planned theme of your Oct 4 issue, which I see will cover data warehousing/data mining. Here is a brief summary of my article: [give summary]. I am a database consultant in the San Francisco bay area and have worked on data warehouse projects for five years. Thank you for your consideration, Bobby Jones. 6/16/2021 39
Tips On Publishing Articles § Review past copies of a journal to see sample articles and their target audience. § Many also have “writer guidelines” that you should review. § Remember also that the lead-time for articles is long. § Accepted articles are typically published in 3 -7 months. 6/16/2021 40
Tips On Presenting Papers § Consider presenting at Oracle user groups. § It is not too intimidating, and the audience is friendly (usually). § Practice the presentation. · Don’t be afraid to say, “I don’t know. ” Encourage anyone in the group to answer. · ALWAYS get there way ahead of time to checkout the room. 6/16/2021 41
Tips On Presenting Papers § In both northern and southern California, there are many Oracle user groups. § In the northern California area, one important group is the Northern California Oracle Users Group—NOCOUG. § You might also consider larger, national conferences. It’s tougher to get accepted, but a hot topic could succeed. 6/16/2021 42
Other Tips: Join User Groups § Failing to participate in user groups is a big career-building blunder. § The cost is small, and the meetings are often fun and educational. § Plus, the Oracle meetings always give away lots of prizes. (I won a great jacket. ) § Another tip: Be willing to help others when they are in a bind or ask for help. 6/16/2021 43
Wrapping Up § Being technical competent is not good enough. § The "best" DBA or developer is smart in many areas -- not just technically. § Career advancement depends on more than just smarts! 6/16/2021 44
The 3 Ideas (1) Advance your career by “learning while working. ” This activity relies upon three ideas: mentoring, researching, and writing. (2) Advance your career by putting the users first. This means practicing “analytical” listening and asking for help. (3) Advance your career by publishing technical articles and presenting. 6/16/2021 45
Wrap-up § None of these steps is difficult, but each requires focus and determination. § With these tips, you can achieve greater competence + exposure to new technology. § In this business, competence and reputation is a sure way to career advancement. 6/16/2021 46
Contact Information Chris Lawson Oracle. Magician. com Tel: 925/829 -7496 Email: chris@oraclemagician. com Coming this fall: “The Art and Science of Oracle Performance Tuning” (WROX/Curlingstone) 6/16/2021 47
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