PASS, Evangelism, Goals, Dreams

The role of PASS in the community has evolved a lot over the past few years. Back in 2006/2007 PASS was mainly about the Summit and trying to grow new chapters, not a lot of emphasis on doing more for chapters and not much interest in a day based event like SQLSaturday. In those days […]

PASS Is Hiring Another Evangelist–Could It Be You?

Just about a year ago PASS hired Karla Landrum to fill the vacancy of the Community Evangelist and that marked in my view a sea change for the organization – it was the first time we had someone in that role that was passionate about community and was part of the community. Combining those two […]

SSC Editorial: Clouds in our Future

I wrote Clouds in our Future to see if I could spark a good conversation about the mental shift required to consider SQL Azure as one of the options we should consider when decide to host data. I can’t say I succeeded well at that goal! I get that the tools aren’t ready and that’s […]

SSC Editorial: Back in Time 100 Years

I wrote the editorial asking what people would have been if they had been born 100 years earlier. It’s a mix of answers, many serious, some humorous, some missing the point of thinking for a minute or two about who they are, with or without technology. It’s a question with no right answer of course, […]

SSC Editorial – What Superhero Would You Be?

This was written for something fun on a Friday, but it’s still interesting for coffee talk anytime – what superhero would you be if you could? Saw a few votes for Batman, a couple for the Flash, and a few more unusual ones – read the comments on the original post, good stuff! I think […]

The Value of Blogging – Today on SQLServerCentral

I wrote the value of blogging hoping to highlight the less often discussed value of practicing writing. Too often we look at blogs solely as a branding tool, or as a way to make money, or to get a zillion hits. Nothing wrong with any of those and I wouldn’t even discourage anyone from trying […]

SSC Editorial – Learning From Experts

Another story with a lesson today, this one about learning to work smarter and not just harder. Easy to say, harder to do! It’s one of the cases when having a great tutor/role model/coach can help you get there a lot faster than if you have to learn it all on your own (even if […]

The Breakfast Plan Goes Awry

Here’s the editorial for SSC today and while it’s a humorous story about asking for donuts and getting a free breakfast for everyone, it’s also a cautionary tale for those trying to do good as managers, and even for employees submitting suggestions. Looking back, I still think it was a fair suggestion in response to […]

Guest Editorial on SSC – Selling Used Cars/Experience Requires Repetition

I’ve been experimenting with stories in the editorial, experiences of my own that are amusing and have some kind of interesting lesson embedded. Stories can be interesting, uplifting, even tiresome, not sure at all where the boundary is yet, or if it can even be defined that way. The good part about stories (and life […]

Does The Job Matter To You?

Last week I wrote an editorial for SQLServerCentral titled Does The Job Matter To You?, asking how much the type of work mattered – what if you could do something you really wanted to and make the same money? As usual the comments (90 or so as I write this) are far more interesting than […]