Voice of the DBA

I started to add a daily coping tip to the SQLServerCentral newsletter and to the Community Circle, which is helping me deal with the issues in the world. I’m adding my responses for each day here. All my coping tips are under this tag. 

Today’s tip is to make a plan to connect with others and do something fun.

My wife and I have a friend turning 50 later this year. It’s a big deal for many people, and this person is hoping to have some sort of celebration. Another friend started to put together a trip for a small group of people to go to the beach and have a fun weekend.

We weren’t sure, but decided to participate and plan. If the pandemic worsens, we can always cancel, but the timeframe is outside the window when most people expect to get vaccinated, so we’re hoping we can get together, have some fun, and enjoy life.

It’s a ways away, but it does give us something to look forward to doing with others.

I started to add a daily coping tip to the SQLServerCentral newsletter and to the Community Circle, which is helping me deal with the issues in the world. I’m adding my responses for each day here. All my coping tips are under this tag. 

Today’s tip is to actively listen to what people say, without judging them.

This is a challenge, especially while being remote from everyone. I see many people in meetings looking around, typing, checking phones, etc. Maybe not that different from some in person meetings, but it does feel often that people aren’t getting engaged.

I’m trying to do better. Yesterday I wrote about listening more to my daughter. Today I have been trying to do better with work meetings. I’m trying to listen more to others, focus on what they’re saying, not getting excited or upset, and absorbing their words. I’ll think about it and then give feedback on how I feel this works best for the organization or a wide variety of people, not just myself.