The value of "schooling" versus other forms of education?

From a LinkedIn Question by Jerry Weinberg

What has been the value to you of "schooling" versus other forms of education?
Mark Twain once said, "I was always careful not to let my schooling interfere with my education."

Being in both the schooling (workshops) and education (books and consulting) businesses myself, I've often wondered how other people spend their valuable time advancing their competence. As a recent member of LinkedIn, t occurred to me that this would be an ideal place to survey people on their personal preferences and practices. Would you be willing to share your own story?

Personally, I prefer to obtain my education through experience, but I do love workshops that teach through experiential methods rather than PowerPoint lectures. And I'm a great reader, as long as the writer helps me "experience" the lessons vicariously, rather than just telling me lists of things.

So, how about you?

Jerry - another great question.

This question has many dimensions:
- 'schooling' - primary, secondary, tertiary, post-graduate, professional
+- public school, private, commercial training
+- apprenticeships, mentoring, on-the-job
- cognitive vs experiential, formal/structured vs unstructured
- self-directed vs syllabus-based
- competency based training (ungraded) vs graded assessment
- certificate of attainment/attendance vs award
- Industry/Professional Certification vs Academic/Govt qualification
- Immersion e.g. Military Training
- Personal (growth) vs Work related vs Professional
- Implicit messages (sub-text) vs Overt

Overview

I think the problem decomposes into, at least, three areas:
- Public Schooling - especially Primary and Secondary
- Work/Industry focussed Training
- Education

Training is specific tool/task oriented.
Education is generic 'memes'.
They overlap... They are not necessarily exclusive.

But the way things are progressing in the Western world, Public Schooling is becoming less and less about equipping students with real Life Skills and more about passing assessments and gaining specific training.

Schooling

James Bach is an exemplar of what public schools would class a 'difficult' student. But his actions show he is actually an inspired, motivated, inquisitive and extremely capable student. The system at his school failed him... They were unable to tailor their curricula & teaching methods to engage, reward and utilise his unique gifts and learning modalities.

One of the smartest guys I've met was a horror at school - he was completely unchallenged - which left the outlet for his energy whilst bored undirected - he 'played up' in class and gave the teachers curry.

I've included links to Ron Clark a teacher who's results have been outstanding. A 2006 film was made about his work and success.

What this shows is:
Teachers ain't Teachers.

i.e. The very best teachers, like the very best musicians, artists, surgeons and other professionals, are a very long way ahead of "the pack".

And the worst teachers do incredible damage...
[Bob Sutton's "The No Asshole Rule" is a corollary in the workplace]

One aspect is this question, 'Schooling', can be taken to mean "publicly funded primary & secondary schools". It's trivial to find a lot of anecdotal evidence that the public school system not only under-performs and fails students, parents and teachers, but actively penalises/expels teachers who dare to attempt to be different/better. [Someone in the Industry may have links to real research in the area]

Simple indicators are teacher burn-out, retention and turn-over.
It's a Politically Correct world gone mad [IMHO].

It is not through a lack of knowledge or attempts at change that our public school system is in this predicament:

In 1969, Postman and Weingartner released "Teaching as a Subversive Activity". It was their PhD research and details the systemic problems and paths to solutions... One of their conclusions was: the primary activity of (public) schools is *child minding*. [They list goals & priorities. 'Teaching knowledge' comes in very low.]

Howard Gardner's 1983 book, "Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences", lays down some basic and essential research on how kids learn. Could there be *any* valid excuse that these principles are not embodied in every classroom 25 years later? I don't think so..

Nobel Laureate, Kenneth G Wilson published "Redesigning Education" in 1994. I thought his approach simplistic, but the fundamental question of huge importance. He gained interest from the Governor of at least one state in the USA, but I've not followed the outcomes.

And then we have Ron Clark making a huge difference within the public school system circa 2000.

Rediscovering the same lessons all over again...
Many biographies of high achievers link their whole career back to a single teacher/boss/person and often a single incident.

There's a pattern here that Mark Twain noticed and crystalised.

There seems to be a systemic bias that:
- deliberately ignores real world knowledge, research and improvement,
- prevents the take up of new methods & processes,
- prevents corporate and professional learning,
- enforces mediocrity and the rule of "Least Common Denominator" for teachers, and
- rewards poor performance of principals and penalises experiments and improvement.


Changing the 'School System' is a Political Act.
There has to be a conscious, deliberate mass movement to effect this change.

But the number one lesson most students learn in school - they are socialised into - is "Duck and Cover" [alongside "accept authority" & "do the bare minimum"].
There are strong disincentives to excel, actively engage or think for yourself.

People who are 'comfortable' don't want the boat rocked. Unless & until ordinary people are impacted by a failed public school system, there cannot be any change.

As a society, we must answer the question:
How many Einstein's, Turning's and Picaso's are we prepared to lose?

---

Tertiary 'Education'

In Australia until the early 1970's, about 2% of people attended University. There was under 50% 'retention' from Year 10 to Year 12. Years 11 & 12 of High School were to prepare for Academe...

There were mass training programs for 'tradesmen' - carpenters, plumbers, mechanics, nurses, ... - backed by a 4-year apprenticeship system. For non academically inclined people, there was a clear and effective career path.

Children were obliged to stay in school until age 15 (year 10) - it was an offense to employ 'minors'.
There was often a rush to 'get a job' on the 15th birthday.

Then it became fashionable to force students into University courses.
The area I live has a 90% 'retention' to Year 12 and 60-80% go onto tertiary, mostly University, courses.
There is a massive under-supply of qualified tradespeople.
Apprenticeships are almost impossible to find.

In all this, Universities have increased funding - but not proportionately [enrollments up 30 times!]
They are also obliged to pitch courses to "Lowest Common Denominator" - the least able student admitted to a course has to be able to complete/pass it.

The volume of students means lecturers are reduced to something like secondary teachers.
Teaching & assessment loads conflict with Research - but they are still assessed on their "research output".

A good University education was always intended to teach people "How to Think" and "How to Learn".
Nowdays, there just isn't time or space in the curriculum for that. It's not assessed, it's not cogently taught.

The whole reason Universities came into existence 400-500 years ago:
'Critical Mass', Synergy and Serendipity, and Tutoring in the Arts,
have been put aside.

---

Training

There are at least two broad areas of work centered Training:
- Commercial 'certification', and
- Public Industry Training,some with Apprenticeships (Community College / Technical and Further Education)

Being a long-term I.T. practitioner, I've seen a whole slew of fads - each backed with their own special language and a host of "Training Vendors" desperate to sell "Certification" courses.

And in the absence of any real alternatives, these Certifications become the metrics managers use to hire.

The positive of courses and formal training:
The curriculum is establish by Subject Matter Experts. It should be a definitive survey of the State of Practice.

---

Education

This is really a self-directed activity:
Lifelong Learning.

Much learning is experiential - you have to 'do it' to understand the problems, pitfalls and to build confidence and execution ability.
[The theory of "10,000 hours" of practice being the difference between also-rans and the best concert musicians to graduate from Music Schools]

Most (all?) professional activities comprise "head and hands" - 'intellectual knowledge' and the experiential learning to execute or implement it. The current buzz phrase for this is "Emotional Quotient" (EQ). It is more than this.

There are two levels:
- The ability to 'execute' (Get things done) of an individual, and
- the full Profession learning - not allowing known errors to be repeated without consequence or known successful techniques to be ignored.

An aside - Learning Professions

- Learning is mediated by Professional Bodies. There have to be clear, well know paths to communicate new 'knowledge'.
- Education & Training courses must embody this Continuing Learning - or suffer consequences
- Learning comes from three sources:
+- Incremental Improvement (add, change, remove) to existing processes, things, practices,theory. Note removal of practices.
+- New Discoveries, Innovation, Theories, Methods.
+- Performance Learning - Detailed Review or Root Cause Analysis of Major Successes, Failures or Incidents.
- Review and Learning bodies have to be (completely) independent of the Compliance/Enforcement bodies.
- A Professional Culture must exist:
+- Learning and Development are accepted as the norm. Recalcitrant practitioners are disciplined or repudiated.
+- On-going Individual Practitioner Assessments by High-Performing Practitioners to identify and address individual suitability for role/task or corrective actions.
+- High-Performers identified by their Performances, not by Politics, Position or Status.
+- Under-Performers identified by their Performances and appropriate consequences despite Politics, Position or Status.
+- Practitioner selection of suitable Practitioners.

Proof

The aviation industry. It has continued to improve on every single metric for six decades - accidents, incidents, costs, performance... It is not 'perfect', but by far and away the best example of Real Quality, Real Improvement and Institutionalised Learning.

Analysing, Reviewing and Reflecting on one's own experiences, challenges and success/failures is necessary for:
- improving both the speed and quality of 'performances'
- learning new skills and new techniques
- identifying areas of weakness or (emotional/social) patterns that prevent your best performance.

This is an active process and one that integrates your whole life: it can't be just at home, relationship or work.

Jerry quite rightly recommends the single most important Professional Development tool:
The Journal.

It is also the most important Life Development tool.
Underpinning both are:
- the willingness to embrace Change, and
- the desire to Improve, Learn and Develop (or grow)

---

Links

Comment on "Redesigning Education"
Ron Clark on Wikipedia
Ron Clark info page
Ron Clark Academy

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Code Reading and Improvement as a Craftsman

An answer to a question from Michael Finney on LinkedIn:

How can one learn to comprehend software code that other people wrote faster than they do now? Join an open source project and practice, practice, practice? I am inspired by people who practice their martial arts every day. Ron Jeffries gave me the idea most recently. Shouldn't we all practice our craft?

I'm intrigued with a number of things about your question:

• why are you asking it? Motivation and Intent.


• for whom are you asking it? Yourself, a friend, your team, a student, ...


• What environment are you intending to do this in?
  
  Work or hobby. Teaching or self-dev. GUI or UI, real-time, low-level, database, web, batch processing, ...


• Are you attempting to improve your Programming-in-the-Large skills, code development, code maintenance or design skills?


• Is this going to be done in Personal time or Paid Time?


• How will you measure 'improvement' or success?


• Why Ron Jefferies? Who is he? Your connection to him.


• Why Open Source?


• Is this an abstract question or addressing a Real Felt Need currently present?


• In what way 'faster'? Clock time, time on task, fixed-first-time, ...
  
  What about other primary aspects: Quality, Security, Performance, Usability. Quality & Design preceed everything else.


• The question is itself confusing to me... Which is part of the answer to it.


• Are you asking for "tips, tools and techniques" that others have used in their professional development?

Most importantly:
What's your Passion? Why do you do what you do?

If you were an aspiring musician and this were a question on "how do I get to the next level", people would be asking you a) where you are NOW and b) where you want to GO.

The same contextual questions apply to you.

Are your career aspirations to "get into management" or to become The World's Best Coder [in some area]. And what are you prepared to give up or go through to achieve that. Linus and Tridge (of Samba fame) both had many years where their wives were worried about their future security.

Jerry Weinberg made an excellent point:
The more poorly designed and implemented code is, the harder it is to understand.

I once stood my ground and declared some code 'unmaintainable'. Whilst I was 'right' and the only long-term solution to the code was complete redesign and rewrite. That became a 'Career Limiting Move'. I'd have achieved much more by Just Doing It [read Clifford Stoll "Cuckoo's Egg"].

For an answer out of my world to make sense to you, you need to understand where I'm coming from, what I've done that makes me relevant to you (just now). My CV is on the web plus some of the stuff I've written.

I've included a link to a piece by an Economist and Academic - Gregory Mankiw. His 'Rules of Thumb' are deliberate, conscious strategies that he deliberately pursued. Obviously refined & redefined over time. He rates "Mentors" very highly. Perhaps this is your way forward...

If you "practice, practice, practice" it will be of little value *unless* you reflect, review and analyse. Demmings "Plan-Do-Check-Act" cycle [Prepare-Execute-Review-Improve in current lingo] is definitive on this. I've included a link to Watts S Humphrey's PSP [Personal Software Process] The most important thing is to find out what you are unconscious about [mistakes you are unaware of] and prevent them.

Jerry Weinberg [in his writing] also stresses the importance of keeping a Journal - the most important part of which is Reviewing it..

The final link is "How to be a Star at Work". Kelley, a respected Organisational Psychologist was asked by the Bell Labs team that wrote exchange software, how to identify & choose "Star Performers". They knew that some of their staff were *at least* 10 times more 'productive'. The management wanted to be able to hire more of them. Kelley and his team took 2 years [and millions I bet] to find there were no psychological differences. It's all about what you do with what you've got... His 9 strategies [in the book index via the link] - the foundation of which is "Initiative". I think there is a Zero'th Law: Improvement is a Conscious, Intentional activity. The same questions/approaches encompass Learning, Quality and High-Performance [reflection and questioning].

Finally, what was the confusion I found in your Question?
Who are the "they" in "they do now?"

It can't be the "one" who's the subject (as in How do *I* read code faster?) Because that doesn't parse.

Clarity of Thought, especially the Quality of your Questions, comes before all else... That takes Practice *and* Feedback.

Ken Thompson, perhaps the best systems and tools programmer ever, made the observation:
My most productive day was deleting 1,000 lines of code.
[Unix V6 was 20,000 lines. That was a massive cut.]

So perhaps the answer to your question lies in another direction.

Links:

Mankiw - Rules of Thumb

Watts S. Humphrey - Personal Software Process

Robert E. Kelley - How to be a Star at Work

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Sys Admin - Technical Advice

Some notes on technical System Admin stuff...


0. The most impressive guy I ever worked with, was not only very bright, but realised he had to organise what he knew.
1. Microsoft is not the be-all and and-all.
2. SAGE-AU - The System Admin Guild.
3. Basic Skills
4. MCSE training.
5. Professional Development.
6. Technical Career Planning
7. Career Planning.
8. Your CV is everything.
9. Performance, Monitoring, Security and Admin
10. In Computing, we are always inventing ourselves out of work.
11. Leverage your special knowledge.
12. Technology Evolves - stay with it.

0. The most impressive guy I ever worked with, DD (D-Squared), was not only
   very bright, but realised he had to organise what he knew.  In 1995,
   he stored everything arcane he'd learned, as well as useful tools
   in a PDA.
   And over time it builds on itself - a 20%/year improvement puts you
   double in 3.5 years and quadruple in 4 years.
   Look at "Star Performer" for research/ideas on *becoming*
   outstanding.  It's intentional, deliberate and focussed.
   
   
Action: Plan how you are going to organise & store what you learn.
        This has got to include web materials that may evaporate.
        With 'flash' memory at $100 for 2Gb, you can carry it always.
    
    
1. Microsoft is not the be-all and and-all.
   Within 5 years, they will suffer a commercial crisis.
   And when they do, the Corporate IT Landscape will undergo a
    substansial disruptive change.
   The Unix/Posix environment is not only useful, but most everywhere
   else. Mac OS/X is built on it well.
   There are a huge number of very good and free tools out there,
   most are born on Unix/Linux, but usually translate to Windows...
    
Action: Get into Linux at home and CYGWIN at work.
        The most radical & important difference is "packages".
         - The ideas apply everywhere & CYGWIN includes 'deb' & 'rpm'.
        Buy your own copy of VMware.
        Disk is cheap, you can have many O/S on your PC :-)
    
      
2. SAGE-AU - The System Admin Guild. 
   This is your key professional resource.  Your boss/work, if they are
   serious about doing *good* admin, should pay for both membership and
   going to the yearly conference.
   Also, , the US/Global version, is worth joining
   on your own dime for a year or two...
   They have a very good collection of "short topics in Admin"
   
   which are available for download to members. 
    
Action: Join SAGE-AU.  Probably too late to get to Conf. July 24-28.
        join SAGE (USENIX)soon and download their booklets.
    
    
3. Basic Skills
   How fast can you type?  What do you do to improve this skill?
   It's not about how fast you can type commands, but email, reports,
   ...

Action: What other basic skills are there??
        What are you doing about improving them?
        What's your basic tool-kit for troubleshooting?


4. MCSE training.
   The best resource I found was the "transcender" exams on disk.
   They have a number of sets of questions.  Doing the first
   trial exam repeatedly, shows you what you do and don't know. They also
   include mini-tutorials on each question, so it's a way to learn.
   You then have in reserve the next or other exams to test yourself.

Action: Go do some of the Transcender exams.  Log the results.


5. Professional Development. 
   * ITIL is building into a strong fad. get basic skills, know the lingo.
     Consider some of the very expensive training.
   * Seeking out and joining your local professional orgs is good.
   * Not joining poor societies is as important.
     Avoid expensive societies that have few Member Benefits.
     Talk to members and if you can, ex-members, for the inside 'gen'.
   * Becoming a mover and shaker - being actively involved, for a
     limited time, in the org. is a great way to meet people and to get
     known. [Who knows you is the most important thing]
   * Planning to write papers and present at conferences is a good
     career strategy.
   * Other organisations, Rotary/Apex/??? have been useful to some.
   * You can form your own SIG (Special Interest Group).
     Expect to be met with apathy and disinterest...
     Absence of feedback is the norm - even when they like what you say.
   * As a career employee, you have to answer these two questions:
        - Where are the best places to work?
        - How can I be valued & appreciated for what I do?
   * The ideal outcome is never apply for a job - to always get
     head-hunted.

Action: Develop plans for using at least two professional groups.


6. Technical Career Planning
   What technical areas appeal to you?  Servers, Desktop, Help-desk,
   build/install or maintenance, web, commercial, ISP, Telco, database,
   networking, ...
   No matter what you do, you will have to know a few scripting
   languages - Perl is a great start. Python is useful too probably.
   In the world of Open Source, 'C' is the lingua-franca.
   You have to be able to download, extract, make, install and read
   'C' programs.  I'm not keen on Java for servers, fits browsers brilliantly.

Action: Consider what you like doing & would like to keep doing.
        Have you met it yet?  Do you know yet?
        What scripting language are you going to learn & develop.


7. Career Planning.
   Have a look at my doc on "The Professional Career Curve":
    
   Older and less well written:
    
   *Now* is the time to be considering what you want to do next...
   If you want to be a) management b) self-employed/contractor or 
   c) your own business, you need to be setting up for this right now.

Action: What are your 'druthers' for the next 5 and 10 years?


8. Your CV is everything.
   My CV doesn't get me work or do justice to what I've done and can do.
   Don't follow me on this. Experienced friends should know a lot about this.
   You may need multiple CV's, or a bunch of std. paras to cut/paste.

Action: Get a *professional* rewrite of your CV.
        You need to keep this updated every 3-6 months,
          especially while you're working.

9. Performance, Monitoring, Security and Admin
   If you decide to get into "security", it's a big deal.  There is a
   lot of detail, and a bunch of it is v. boring and drudgery...
   But as a practising professional admin, you've got to know the
   basics.
   I.T. is done for a Business Benefit, Infrastructure is basic tools.
   All of this depends on being able to quantify performance, and
   know if things are OK or have turned to mush.
   You've got to have basic Performance Analysis and Capacity Analysis/Planning
   skills and knowledge - and learn a set of Performance Monitoring
   tools.  I can recommend Neil Gunthers' work - but may be too arcane.
   "Nagios" and Big Brother/Sister are good places to start.

Action: Go research monitoring tools :-)
        Ask people about at your work about Performance & Monitoring.
        Secure, Remote access to systems is important - learn SSH.


10. In Computing, we are always inventing ourselves out of work.
    In 1975, there was high demand for "tape librarians", operators and
    shift leaders - and people who did printers, cards and paper.
    They've all been replaced by technology, tools and techniques.
    The basic number, my "stp-mark", of the number of desktops &
    servers your average self-trained IT guy can put together & run
    with a credit-card at Harvey Normans/Dick Smith's, keeps rising...
    The number desktops, servers, users and applications per admin
    keeps increasing...
    SOE's keep developing.

    We know two things:
        - the number of admins per site will keep decreasing
        - effective support can only be delivered on-site
        - remote tools & support is increasing.

    How will these factors affect professional Admins?
    Will we ever reach the level of 2-admins per 1,000 desktop/user?
    [Can't ever have just one - holidays, succession and single-point-failure]
    In such a world, how will companies employ admins?
    How will local support be done?


Action: What do you see the industry trends to be? Over 1,5&10 years.
        CPU's, memory, networks, storage, O/S, services, admin.


11. Leverage your special knowledge.
    See "Measuring and Motiving Maintenance Programmers".
    This book impressed me so much, I scanned & OCR'd it.
    [With permission of authors' estate.]
    It's short, 96pp.
    Jerry Landsbaum was an engineer who moved into I.T.  I think he did
    an outstanding job because he leveraged his professional
    knowledge...

Action: Read the book.
        Consider the special knowledge & skills you have from your past
        work and study and how they can give you a Professional Edge.


12. Technology Evolves - stay with it.
    The IT industry regularly passes through 'event horizons'. The biggest in the
    last 15 years was 'The Internet' (really http + browser). More follow.
    You have to keep on or ahead of the curve or become career roadkill...
  * Herb Sutter's "The Free Lunch is Over" mentions in an aside that in early 2003
      the doubling period of Moore's Law radically changed - but MIPS continue
      to increase through multi-cores. This changes the game completely.
    * Tape storage $/Gb is a lot more expensive than hard-disk.
      NetApp came up with "Snapshots" in the early 1990's.
      They are as important and radical change as RAID was.
    * My 'multiverse' and PSIoN ideas will underpin a new Internet/Web.
      You have an inside track there :-)
    * Around 1.7Ghz, Corporate Desktops became "sufficient". Until then, they were
      the high-end of the market. Now the bleeding-edge is
    * Laptops and wireless ethernet are a match made in heaven. They complement
      each other perfectly.  The sub-$1000 laptop and 300Mbps wireless shift the
      equation more heavily away from Desktops in most applications.
    * What's different on the desktop since Win-95 [or Mac 84]? Not hardware or speed/size.
      Mostly, very little.
      XML, Flash memory, MP3 and USB have created a whole raft of new applications and
      devices.
    * Blogs - are they a blip, fad or something new?
    * Wiki's are the perfect tool for Group Documentation.
    * Where are the Tablet computers?
    * How are 'smart-phones' and high-end PDS's going to compete with cheap, small laptops?
    * SUN's "datacenter in a box" [20' container] could be the start of a whole
      new approach to computing - not just "Lights Out", but "Locked Down".
    * Computers aren't computers anymore.
      The PC created the desktop and ended the Glass Tower of the isolated mainframe.
      Ethernet enabled file and print sharing - general 'workgroup' computing.
      Internet protocols enabled real networking.
      Alta Vista, Google and friends freed content on the Net.
      Credit Cards enable e-commerce.
      Today we have Office-Tools, appliances, embeded systems, servers, distributed
      applications and central apps - as well as High Availability, Mobile Computing,
      Personal devices and more.

      The on-going evolution of IT requires rethinking the basics, often.
      Distinguishing fads, fashions and hype from real discontinuities requires
      insight.
      Repeating what worked 10-15 years ago is now radically under-performing -
      staying technologically stuck will lead to groups or companies to be replaced.

Action: Create mechanisims to stay informed.
        Learn to filter 'flash and sizzle' from What's Important.


Hope this is useful. Hope it doesn't seem too much to start with.
I've most likely forgotten stuff and will issue updates :-)

Feel free to share and get comments.  You need to form your own views on
things...

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Summary...

Sys Admin - Professional Advice

Here's some notes on Mentoring and Professional development to read and consider.

1. What are *your* expectations, desires and intentions for this?
2. I can only preach what I practice... Ghandi did this, who am I to do different?
There are areas, like career planning, where I *cannot* help you.
3. If it isn't written down, it didn't happen.
4. You already have *great* resources in your life - are you accessing them now?
* Getting Things Done breaks down into 4 areas:
- Goals, Tasks, Actions, Blocks.
* Figure out where you have 'unfinished business' and do some work on that.
Create these 3 lists.
- Plan the actioning of seeing people.
- Start of record your goals and outcomes for later analysis.
- Record the times/events you go on 'autopilot'.
Later you'll figure out how to address them
5. There are three regions of time - past, present, future.
You operate in the present, learn from the past and plan for the future.
6. Knowing yourself.
The better you know yourself, the better you can perform, both by leveraging
your Strengths and Talents, and by covering your weaker suits.
There are three regions:
- what you're good at, poor at - and your blindside - both good and poor at.
7. Knowing your values, What matters to you.
8. "Perfect" and "good enough".
9. Your Life comes as a whole.
10. 80/20 Rule - Only 20% of a job is about Technical stuff.
11. Quality is a mindset, not an after thought.
12. This model came over coffee with a friend: Passion, Urgency, Self-Management.
13. Project Management is a key skill.
14. You become those who you surround you - like Friends, Family, Colleagues.
15. Books - Gotta have 'em, Gotta manage 'em.
16. Curiosity, Understanding.
17. Carpe Diem.
18. Denial, Avoidance, Procrastination, "Busy Waiting"/"Furious Inactivity": - Find your Motivation.
19. Organisation, Processes, Systems and Spring Cleaning/Weeding.
20. Teams, Management, 'Star Performances' and Quality Software.
21. Essential Professional Skills.

1. What are *your* expectations, desires and intentions for this?
    How far do you want this work to go? 
    What are the criteria for you that will make it 'good' (or 'bad')??
    What sort of commitment in time, energy and attention are you willing/able to make?
    [Set expectations, limits and goals] 
    
    Any manager/coach/mentor cannot not put in more commitment than the person shows.
    And I'm a fallible human as well.  I have limited energy and do over-estimate my energy
    [and under-estimate time needed] all the time.  I need you to be aware of this and not
    expect more than I can deliver - and also have your understanding when I under-perform.

    Spend time considering this and write down your "top 5" [or 3 or 10] list.
  
  
2. I can only preach what I practice...  Ghandi did this, who am I to do different?
   There are areas, like career planning, where I *cannot* help you.
  
   Look around at the people you know or could get introduced to - who's done well in a
    area you want some ideas on?? Approach them and ask how they did it, what's important.
   Who's the most successful person career-wise in the family or your circle? Talk to them.
   [The corollary to this is: It's what you *do* that counts, not just what you *say*]

   But in your work-place - look for people who do well and specifically ask for guidance.
   The more targeted your questions, the more specific they can be -
    but the most important thing is finding out things you don't know...
  
   Write down the circles of people you have in your life and create some lists
    of people you do things well that you need to learn. Go talk to them, make notes,
    ask when you can/should come back and talk to them again and if they'll help
    you from time to time if you hit problems.
   A stretch goal is to identify a (small) number of people outside your immediate
    circles you'd like to emulate - meet them and run the same process.
  

3. If it isn't written down, it didn't happen.
    Consistently, the best advice on Sucess and Professional Development I've read is
     to keep a journal or notebook(s).
    This is the *one* common theme in biographaries of all very successful people.
    It's not about keeping a diary of events, though that is useful, but mining both the
      events of the past and your reactions.
    * At work you need some sort of day book, log book, lab notebook,...
    * For other areas of your life, suitable journals. 
  
    Go grab two notebooks, an organiser, a Blog or files on your PC and
     start to write. And keep writing. I know when I stop writing, that's
     when I most need to write - I'm overwhelmed, overloading or depressed...
  
  
4. You already have *great* resources in your life - are you accessing them now?
   One really big regret I have is when cleaning up my Dads' records [they were good],
    I realised that he never sat me down and said "this is what I've learned, this works".

    * Go and ask your parents [and maybe past teachers/lecturers/bosses/???]
      + The general question - what's the good oil?
      + What's really worked for you? How do you do that?
      + What's the best things you done/learned?
        e.g. Your Mum is very, very good at Budgeting and Cooking and ...
             Your Dad is a fierce competitors and hugely dedicated to both
             his work and family.
  * Getting Things Done breaks down into 4 areas:
        - Goals, Tasks, Actions, Blocks.
      + If you try to do things, are motivated but can't do make it happen,
        you've got a 'block' [could be "Writers Block"].
        Discovering, Naming and addressing Blocks is a Lifetime Task.
        Be gentle on yourself about working these out - everyone *always*
         does the best they can with what they got and, looking back,
         you'll always wonder why you did less than you might have...
         Remember "You Did Your Best" at the time.
      + If you set Goals and they don't happen, most often they aren't a Real Priority.
        Your Priorities are what you actually *do*, not intend to..
        Reset your Goals in-line with what you *do*.

    * Figure out where you have 'unfinished business' and do some work on that.
      These 'daemons in the closet' do and will control your automatic responses and
       reactions. It's how our brains are built. You have to be in control of your
       actions and reactions to do well.
      They are not that hard to deal with - mostly just take Naming and Facing.
      Sometimes a single, sharp shock will evaporate them, othertimes you have
       to regularly revist them. Always, having addressed them, you will benefit
       if you stay aware and are not tempted back to them.
      Always, limiting patterns and responses developed as Adaptive Strategies - they
       worked and had Good Payoffs. You have to step away from the Payoff as well.
      [In general terms, unfinished business comes as: regret, resentment, and guilt]
      [Look up the literature on 'Mindfulness']

    Create these 3 lists.
     - Plan the actioning of seeing people.
     - Start of record your goals and outcomes for later analysis.
     - Record the times/events you go on 'autopilot'.
       Later you'll figure out how to address them


5. There are three regions of time - past, present, future.
    You operate in the present, learn from the past and plan for the future.
    Doing all three well is probably impossible for one person:
     - we all have an preferred area, and we tend to get trapped in our usual modality.

    You have to address all three areas adequately to achieve your goals:
     - Do what you do well, and keep improving your performances.
     - Mining the past for lessons
     - Planning for the future.

    Consider this and come up with some ideas on how you're going to manage all three areas.


6. Knowing yourself.
    The better you know yourself, the better you can perform, both by leveraging
     your Strengths and Talents, and by covering your weaker suits.
    There are three regions:
     - what you're good at, poor at - and your blindside - both good and poor at.

    The Gallup organisation did worldwide research that led to the book:
      "Now, discover your strengths".
    * they make the very simple point that the highest returns on your time
      are by building your strengths.
    * I don't think weak areas can just be ignored - but they do have to be managed.
    * And the universe has a nasty little rule:
      - you *will* be bitten by things you ignore...

    We have to come up with some sort of map of both
      what you excel at - what strengths, skills, abilities and talents you have.
      And the areas you don't do well.
    Then we can work on the how's and what's of building your strengths.

    Write down your "top 7" list of both sides...
     And make a stab at where you suspect you have blindsides.
     Then go talk to people in your circles who will give you honest and
     insightful feedback. First get them to list your A and B sides, then
     what they see as your blindside. Then show them the relevant parts of
     your lists and discuss.


7. Knowing your values, What matters to you.
   Over time, your priorities change.  Things assume different relative importance.
   A useful exercise is to write down and order your top ten...
     And to repeat this from time to time.
    
    Create a section in your notebook that you'll come back to every 3 months.
     Onto slips of paper, take 10-15 minutes to 'braindump' everything you hold dear.
     Place these slips in order by comparing pairs and asking two questions:
      - How would it be *without* this in my life?
      - Which has the strongest postive pull for me?
     Write the number you need into your notebook.
     Schedule a time with yourself to mull over how well you are fulfilling
      these needs and living your values.


8. "Perfect" and "good enough".
    'perfect' is the enemy of both Quality and Execution (getting things done).
    It's rare that I feel that something I've done couldn't have been done better
     in some ways 
     - but at the end of the day, 80% of something is better than 0% of 'perfect'.
    
    Consider how you are going to set "good enough" goals for things.
    You'll need an on-going list to manage this, and to periodically set aside
     time to evaluate your performance.


9. Your Life comes as a whole.
    You always need to be aware of your Work-Life balance - to actively manage it.
    You are comprised of physical-mental-emotional-spiritual parts
     - and need to feed and manage all aspects of yourself.
    Your life is comprised of relationships with yourself, your partner,
     your family (up, down and out), your friends and all your other circles.
    To get the best out of your life, you need to get the best out of yourself
     and your relationships.
    
    The same parts of you that operate in personal relationships, will operate
     in the workplace, with friends, ...
    
    Mining *all* parts of your Life for lessons is important.
    And so is applying your best tools and thinking to all areas of your life.
    Which implies that you allocate time to rest, relaxation, recreation
      - as well as work, study, play :-)
    
    One thing I know to be very true for myself, without a supportive partner,
     I can't be the best I can be [in fact, I can't even be a very good version of me].
    And things I never planned to happen, like children, never happened.
    
    Consider how you can going to manage your *entire* life, including your work.
    Sketch a few Life Goals into your notebook.
    Make some notes on how you are manage the competing demands and priorities.


10. 80/20 Rule - Only 20% of a job is about Technical stuff.
    The really important things are how you relate to people, manage yourself and your time.
    The Technical Stuff is important and I will do the best I can to help you there...
     In a separate doc.

11. Quality is a mindset, not an after thought.
    It is also the bed-fellow of high-performance and professional development.
    Because both depend on examining your past performance,
     identifying "errors", "mistakes" and "failures" [undershoots] as well as
     successes is vitally important to build High-Performance and High-Quality.
     [Mistakes are repeated Errors.]

    Both arise from *caring* about the outcomes for others.
    This is being both conscious and *learning*.

    Setting processes in place so that it's hard to repeat errors and failures,
     and so it's easy to turn-in your best performances, is the basis for both.
    Which subsumes that you both intentionally review and learn,
     and design and plan ahead.

    Start sections for "successes", "errors", "mistakes" and "failures".
    Schedule time with yourself to consider what is working for you, and
     what isn't. You will figure out a system that works for you.


12. This model came over coffee with a friend: Passion, Urgency, Self-Management.

    * What would make you leap out of bed in the morning?
      [Where's your passion?]
    * Things only get done if there is a deadline.
      [Sense of urgency]
    * How do you get yourself to do things?
      [Self-management]

    You will have to address all 3 aspects over time.
    Do you have particular concerns going in?
    Capture your thoughts and run them by someone close and trusted.


13. Project Management is a key skill.
    You can already do it well enough for smaller projects,
     now we're going to apply it to a larger stage.

    All projects start with Goals/Objectives.
      The best ones come with Criteria for Success and Pulling the Plug.
    Good projects have a workable/realistic Plan.
      [SMART Goals - Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, Timed]
    And if it's worth doing, it worth writing down...
    When things gets done, it's vitally important to know they are done.
    Celebrating Achievements is important too.

    Write up a few goals you have for a few areas of your life.
    We'll work out plans in requisite detail...
      - Too much detail, too soon is deadly and begets the "Analysis Paralysis" trap
      - Too little detail will result in lots of "surprises"
      - No Planning: "Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail"
    Tracking them will be part of future work.
    Mining them for Lessons will be our goal.


14. You become those who you surround you - like Friends, Family, Colleagues.
    If you can surround yourself with people on the same track and good values,
     you will all achieve far, far more.
    This implies that you must choose to remove people from your life that
    don't affirm or enhance you. If people don't make you more, they aren't good for you.

    This can be conscious and intentional.
    With a group of your mates, you can both create a (mutual) support group
     and develop your leading, coaching, mentoring skills.


    I'm not sure if you can build a support group to do this work.
     But it'd be really useful.


15. Books - Gotta have 'em, Gotta manage 'em.
    They bring new ideas, perpectives and concepts into your life.
    - don't buy them unless you schedule time to read them
      [I've many untouched books that seemed a 'really god idea' at the time]
    - Budget: don't spend more or less than you're happy with.
    - if a book you read is useful, capture some notes on it.
      You will build up an impressive catalogue over time, and
       you'll be able to easily review and remind yourself of what you know.
      Create and refine your own 'Knowledge Base'.
    - You don't have to read every book cover-to-cover, but don't skip an
       author without giving them a chance.
      Life is too short for Bad Wine and Poor or Empty Writing.
      Money is replacable, but time can only ever be lost.
    - Your tastes, interests and passions *will* change over time.
      Sometimes more suddenly than you can believe - as in the middle of a book
       you started totally engaged in.
      Accept this when it happens, tie up any loose ends, put away the past,
       and move into your new area.
    - Allow time for undirected browsing, Allow yourself the odd impulse buy.
      Put yourself in the way of unexpected gems.

    Make plans in your notebook for how you're going to create and maintain
     your catalogue and reviews/summaries.
    Document your current "Hot 5" topics, research a little on the best
     sources on the topic. Sketch a rough plan to

16. Curiosity, Understanding.
    This, I believe, is the single most powerful trait that separates us
    from all other creatures. As a species, we posses an intense and deep
    curiosity that is driven by a *need* to understand. This is the source
    of the wonderment of small children.
    To deny or curtail this aspect of yourself will limit your whole life.


17. Carpe Diem.
    Synergy, Serendipity and Synchronicity are powerful forces, use them
     to your advantage. Purposefully create situations where they will
     come into play. Consciously put yourself in the way of New Things.
    Grab opportunities as they arise. There *will* be times you see or hear
     something and it 'clicks' immediately.
    Trust your instincts, 'gut', non-conscious or intuition - 'tis how
     we make good decisions without "full information".
    Don't be a slave to Plans, they are maps only, not the country.
     Though without them you'll not get very far.
    A habit of Not Acting is insidious - it will increasingly limit your life
     over time.


18. Denial, Avoidance, Procrastination, "Busy Waiting"/"Furious Inactivity".
    Find your Motivation.

    To be successful, you need to discover your unconscious ways to *not* do things.
    You can address these by overcoming them or not allowing the situations to
    develop. Unaddressed, you will underachieve and feel unfulfilled.

    You have to discover your own Process/Method.
    Leverage your notebook, Mine what you've captured there, Seek help when needed.


19. Organisation, Processes, Systems and Spring Cleaning/Weeding.
    "Death and Taxes" are inevitable - and so is the minutiae of modern living.
    * Having a Filing System that works for you is a necessity.
      - capturing documents is easy [like a box], the art if finding them
        again, quickly, as you need them.
      - that means occasional culling, pruning or spring cleans
    * Achieving Tasks
    * Scheduling and keeping appointments
      - Find what works for you... Organiser, Phone, PC, paper diary, ...
      - the only satisfactory performance level is "100%". Forget nothing.
        If it's important enough to schedule, it's important enough to keep the promise.
   * David Allen's "Getting Things Done" or Kerry Gleeson's "Personal Efficiency Program"
     are two good places to start. 
   * Kathy Waddill's "Orgainsation Sourcebook" and 'theuntangledweb.com' list
     "9 strategies of Reasonably Organized People'.
     Is as close to a definitive guide in the area as possible. 
   * Successful people are "Organised Enough" and embrace "Good Enough"
     (sometimes that's 'perfect') both in their professional and personal lives.
    
    Develop a Plan, set some reasonable targets and Execute it.
    Use your Notebook and other tools to drive this.
    You will have to revisit this regularly as your responsibilities and needs
     evolve.


20. Teams, Management, 'Star Performances'  and Quality Software.
    Here are some other resources I believe to be necessary and definitive.
    
    * Teams, not groups, are necessary for High-Performance.
      I've not found a book that proves this, though many make the assetion.
    * David H Maister's "Practice What you Preach" is the definitive text
      for what matters in management - looking after your people.
      He proves through real research it's cheaper and more profitable.
    * Robert E Kelley [kelleyideas.com] in "How to be a Star at Work" reports
      definitive research on becoming/creating very high performing individuals
      (Star Performers).  His team came up with 9 strategies that are learnable.
    * Jerry Weinberg's 4 Volume set "Quality Software Mangement" is as close
      to the definitive tract on IT/IS. It's as complete as Donald Knuth's,
      "Art of Computer Programming". Jerry's a prolific author (50 books). All good.
      His website, 'geraldmweinberg.com', has many links to his community.
    * Dr Robyn Skinner and John Cleese wrote some books on who we are and how we
      tick. They are clear and accessible, and look to be as definitive as possible
      on the topic for non-professionals.


21. Essential Professional Skills.
    Keyboarding has been an essential skill for all white-collar or knowledge
    workers for the last ten years.
    
    What other skills are there for you? Such as: where do you go for Information?
    What's your plan to a) discover them, and b) become proficient?
    Your Notebook is your friend...

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Advice for Year 12

Dear P,

When you said you were being pressured by your parents to study hard for
YR12, I thought I'd write you a note...


Taking advice from others is *always* fraught...
- They cannot know what's inside your head, what you can, can't and
will/won't do, and your hopes & dreams....
- They cannot know the future.
[The brother of a friend at Uni did brilliantly in his Honours Year.
Died a month later, climbing accident.]

More...

If people offer you facts that may aid in your decision, that's the best
they can do...

Trying to make up your mind for you is taking away your Rights and
Responsibilities as an Adult.

Whatever you decide, you get to live with it and the consequences for a
very long time.
- I chose to fail 3 subjects in 1974 and had to study part-time.
It radically altered my career path and opportunities.

Here are some things you may like to take into consideration on when
deciding how hard you'll study this year:

- You get one chance to do Yr12 the first time.
- It's really hard to repeat it later. After you've been
working/earning money, going back is really difficult.
- Good marks are about *choices*, not decisions and being locked-in.
With a good mark, you have the choice to leverage it and pursue a
bunch of options.
With a lower mark, those choices won't be available. Others may be...

- A good Yr12 result does not guarantee your future, in the same way a
bad one doesn't necessarily destroy it.

- If you intend to go to Uni, get a normal job and do the wife + 2.1
children thing, a good Yr12 result is mandatory.
- that may not be your plan.

- Performing below your ability is an easy habit to start. It's a much
harder one to break.

- Getting an 'ordinary' pass tells prospective employers one of two things:
- You are smart and can't be bothered working -> a NO HIRE
- You have ordinary talents and can apply yourself -> may be a HIRE

Joel Spolsky in "Joel On Software" talks about his hiring process.
He want people that are *both* smart and "can get things done".
Being able to complete a degree is one of the simple-minded markers
people use to quickly sort candidates.
That is usually the sole benefit of a degree - to land your first
'professional' job.
After that, you actually have to 'perform'.

- The world of work has been turned on its head in the last 30 years.
- It's no longer 'a job for life' - unless you go into Police,
Health, Public Service/Military, Teaching
- The received wisdom a few years back was people of your generation
would have 3-5 careers and 30+ jobs in a lifetime.
Advice designed to underpin 'job for life' no longer applies.
But the same qualifications may enable many career choices in
todays' work climate.

- At 17/18 you still have another 5-7 years of growing to do. Your brain
will be organically developing until you are 25.
yes! that's a long time... Remember how different you were at 11.

- An important principle is:
You cannot know what you'll feel and be like in another 10 years.
- Don't make decisions now that presume you'll have the same
priorities, values, interests, beliefs in another 10yrs.
If you lock yourself onto a path now, down the track you could
live to regret it.

- As a teenager, you are creating your own identity and sense of self.
Part of that is taking your own decisions,
being responsible for yourself...
One of the usual battles of adolescent males is rejecting outright
anything pushed by their parents - I know what that feels like :-)
Making a decision compulsively is not taking an informed choice, It
won't serve you well.

See John Marsden's book "Secret Men's Business" on claiming your own
identity different to your parents.

- As humans, we are at effect of our hormones more than we like to
believe. You can clearly see it with Women - they can be amazingly
fickle and over-react emotionally to nothing... Guys have a different
effect - we like taking risk and sometimes doing dangerous things. The
rates of male deaths increase hugely around 14/15 and aren't back to
normal until 25 or so. This is the reason that males under 25 get
expensive car insurance. And why the Military won't [or didn't] recruit
people over 30 - they have a different set of priorities and won't be
told what to do so easily ;-)

These overwhelming effects last maybe until age 40-45... Don't have
any figures/research to quote you.

- There are some very good books around about making decisions, such as
"Yes or No" by Spencer Johnson.
- some decisions, like drinking Coke or not, don't require a deep
decision process
- others require gathering information, researching choices and
careful deliberation

- the trick is not to confuse the two... To make hasty decisions when
you need to make a careful one - or vice versa.

- Your Intuition is your most powerful tool available to you.
Unfortunately, like any useful tool - it is both 'sharp' and hard to
use. You need to learn how to use it and when to trust it... Doubting
your Intuition undermines and destroys it. Jumping at anything isn't
"Intuition", but abrogating your responsibilities.
See "Awakening Intuition" by Frances E. Vaughan


I hope you find something helpful in this and wish you all the best on
your journey!

Hope to hear good things about you in the future.

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