I remember a lot of things about that day. It was July in Texas, which is to say, it was unbearably hot. For the work I ended up doing that day, I was way overdressed in my long-sleeved blue button down and khakis. I was training a new guy – Andy – who had recently been promoted from Service Agent…
“Hey man, this is Ty*, what’s happening?” roared the familiar voice in my Bluetooth earpiece. It was a voice I knew well, and briefly brought a smile to my face. After exchanging pleasantries and catching up a bit, Ty revealed the real reason for his call: “Say, dude, I’m looking for a new job, and I was hoping you’d write…
Earlier today I read a blog post that compares consultants with corporate staff members. The author unashamedly compares consultants to major league baseball players, while grouping corporate staffers into the minor leagues. While he does make a few valid points, the theme of the post – as well as many of the assumptions he makes – are out of left…
I just received notification from the Microsoft MVP Award Program that I’ve received the MVP award for SQL Server for 2011. This is my second year to be awarded, and I’m very honored to be a part of this group. As always, I offer a big thank you to the SQL Server community for allowing me to share my humble…
Like clockwork, another year has come and (almost) gone. It’s been a wild year on many fronts: major happenings included the devastating Haiti earthquakes, the signing into law of a landmark healthcare reform bill, a major debacle over the use of body scanners and intimate pat-downs at TSA airport security stations, the personal crash and burn of golf star Tiger…
My friend Jen McCown of MidnightDBA fame issued a challenge last week called “Un-SQL Friday”. The inaugural topic is on branding. Although I’ve written a little about personal branding over the years, I don’t pretend to be an expert, but I have learned a thing or two that works for me. As I mentioned in a comment on Brent Ozar’s…
There are some questions that can’t necessarily be answered in a book or a training video. Those are often the questions revolving around “why?” rather than “how?”. A prime example from my own experience is my lack of understanding of the criticality of transaction isolation levels. As a very green SQL Server professional (and in this case, I define professional…
Way back during my days as a retail clerk, I had a customer who had a, um, clothing malfunction. The store was very busy one afternoon, and as he approached me to ask a question, it was readily apparent that his barn door was left open. As discreetly as I could, I leaned in and whispered to him that he…
I’d like to share a networking success story. Last year, I blogged about my experience at the PASS Summit of 2005, where I was essentially a wallflower and didn’t really do any networking. Since then, I’ve realized its importance and have embraced professional networking as a key component in a successful career. Ever since then I have carried through on…
So for the latest database geek meme, Paul Randal started this thing off and tagged Tom LaRock, who enlisted Grant Fritchey, who finally tagged me. This one simply asks, “What 3 things or events brought you to where you are today?” The Eyes Barely a year out of high school, I was working full time in retail and occasionally attending…