Voice of the DBA

Tag: work

  • Back from My Sabbatical

    It’s been six weeks away from work, but I’m back now. It was a great break, I’m refreshed, and I am ready to get back to writing, speaking, and working with the data platform again. I haven’t done much SQL Server work, but I have been busy. With this being my first day back, I did spend a few minutes looking back at what it was like to have a voluntary, extended break from work.

    The time away was very refreshing. I was able to spend days on my own personal growth in a few areas as well as tackle personal projects that my wife and I have wanted to do around the house. I avoided the computer for the most part, only using it for personal tasks, like watching guitar videos on YouTube. I used my hands often, rarely sitting at a desk.

    At the same time, this was an enlightening break. I realized I enjoy my job, and I enjoy technology. During a two day stretch near the end of my time away, I attended a conference and spoke. I engaged with other technologists and realized that I really enjoy working with and talking about databases and technology.

    I am ready to go back to work and looking forward to what 2020 brings to my career. I’ve missed Redgate, and I’ve missed interacting with many of you on a daily basis.

    Perhaps the best part of the sabbatical was that it have me a glimpse of retirement. I puttered around the house, did things I wanted to do, at my pace, without pressure. I handled it well, though I also think I do need a little more purpose or focus when I do retire.

    It was a good break for me, and I’m looking forward to the next sabbatical in a few years. In the meantime, I’m ready to get back to writing and speaking and SQLServerCentral.

    Thanks to Kathi, Kendra, Grant, and the others at Redgate for covering my work while I was away, and I hope everyone out there enjoyed their stewardship if the community.

    Steve Jones

     

  • Off for a Holiday

    This has been a crazy month, and it’s getting crazier. So far I’ve been to these places this month:

    • Washington, D.C.
    • New York City
    • London

    Today I’m in Chicago for the SQL in the City Summit. I flew in yesterday, prepped, and today is the event. It’s exciting, and I’m glad this is the end of the Summits because I fly home late tonight, arriving around 10.

    That gives me 12 hours to get home, unpack, repack, get back to the airport before a 10am flight to Hong Kong. I probably need to sleep in there as well.

    I’ve never been, but my wife and I booked a short trip, so I’ll be gone for the next week, taking a break from my travels with a more travel, but it should be exciting.

    Enjoy Halloween without me.

  • Limiting the Ability to Concentrate and Collaborate

    I used to have an office. I guess I have an office now, but it’s not mine; it’s shared with my wife. As I look back at my career, I realize that I’ve often taken a job that switched me from a more open working environment to an office, and back. Early in my career, we had cubes, which a few of us combined into an open 4 desk space at one point. Then I took a job with an office, then back to an open plan (10 developers in a room), then my own office, before ending up with my shared office. Actually, I’m always sharing a space. When I travel to the Redgate offices, they have an open plan, so I get a desk that’s open to a few dozen other people.

    I’ve gone back and forth on whether or not I want a shared space. I’ve come to the conclusion that it really depends on my job. When I worked as a sysadmin, where we were constantly collaborating with others, an open, shared space worked well. We could easily talk to each other, which was an efficient way to work.

    When I’ve worked as a developer or a manager, I’ve preferred having my own office. The ability to concentrate for longer periods of time is helpful for me, and while headphones separate me, they aren’t as private, as there can still be visual distractions as people move around. I’ve had people come up to tap me on the shoulder, which can ruin my concentration at times.

    There’s an article at Ars Technica that talks about a study showing that open plans result in much less productivity and even less interaction. That seems counterintuitive, as I’d expect an open plan to encourage more interaction. Indeed, when I’m at the Redgate office, I find that someone will often turn and chat with a friend. Or if two people are talking, it can become a watercooler atmosphere where others join in. There seem to be plenty of interaction.

    When I’ve been at Microsoft, where everyone has a small office and most with a window to the hallway, I find lots of open and closed doors, with the former inviting others in and the latter discouraging it. I do see plenty of workers get distracted if someone stops and looks in the window. At the same time, I also find there are lots of open spaces where people can engage with others and even work in an open space if they desire.

    I don’t know if one way is better or worse than the other. I know that I feel differently at different times about how I work. At Redgate, we do have some pods for private work if you choose, but they aren’t completely closed off. They’re more like a cube or a small space for one person. I do find that having a private space is important for me at times, and if I were to go back to a company’s location on a regular basis, I’d want to ensure I had some sort of private office, even if it were only for a portion of a week and others used it when I wasn’t there.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcast

    Listen to the MP3 Audio ( 5.1MB) podcast or subscribe to the feed at iTunes and Libsyn.

  • Fun at Work

    I am lucky in that I get to travel and speak at a number of events every year. As a result, I meet lots of people in a variety of situations. Many of these places have a social component and often result in pictures. I love that because pictures are memories for me, and I look back at them to reminisce about good times in life.  I greatly appreciate having Facebook remind me of images from the past, some of which I’ll share back out as they’re great memories for others in my family.

    This has changed dramatically in the last decade, as everyone seems to have a camera on them at all times in their phone. That means many more memories I can capture. Some of these are silly, and I wrote a blog with some of the funny ones I’ve gotten over the years. In the past, I have relatively few pictures from work. Early in my career, film cameras were rare. We only carried them around for special events, which wasn’t often at work. I do have actual physical pictures of a few work parties, but rarely of workspaces and situations. There are certainly some I wish I’d been able to capture and save.

    For many of you, I’m sure that’s different now. Some of you have grown up with cameras and spent most of your career with them. When I asked about desks, quite a few of you posted pictures, with some really interesting items. Those are likely going to be fun memories for you at some point in the future.

    Today I’m wondering if you have some funny, silly, even head shake photos of yourself or work. Nothing that will get anyone in trouble or be offensive, but maybe you’ve run across a sign on a wall, some wild cabling, or even a snapshot of you and others celebrating some accomplishment. If you can share them. Check out the fun pics on my blog over the years that make me smile, and if any of you have old pictures of me, please post or send them along.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcast

    Listen to the MP3 Audio ( 3.1MB) podcast or subscribe to the feed at iTunes and Libsyn.