Rix Bits

Being a consultant can be challenging, and although there have been many books and articles written on the subject of how to be a good consultant (or even how to be a BAD one), much of what we learn about consulting comes from hands-on experience and trial-and-error. Fortunately, in the 1980’s there was another body of work produced on the subject of consulting that has been particularly useful for me. It was a film called “The Ghostbusters”*, and for me, it was an enlightening look at several areas of consulting that we’ve all had to deal with from time to time. Here are some of the subjects that this ground-breaking piece of work helped to make clear for me:

On Tuesday, April 3rd at 7pm EST, I’ll be delivering an online webinar for the Atlanta chapter of the BDPA as part of their Tech Talks series. I’ve got 90-minutes to give a crash course to attendees on everything that is the wonderful world of SharePoint… [read more here]

[my article originally posted at ITMartini]

As IT professionals, we spend many years developing our crafts, and investing in our careers. Along the way, we have all probably been fortunate enough to get help from many sources, including colleagues and mentors who decided to take the time to share their knowledge and experience with us. As a result, we grow in our profession, and for most of us we inevitably ask the question – what can I do to give back, and make the same investment in others that someone made in me? Fortunately, there are many ways in which we can ‘return the favor’ in the IT community, and by doing so, make a positive impact on our industry.

Talk

For some, the thought of public speaking is frightening. Ironically, the best way to get over that fear is to do more of it. And if you can overcome your hesitations about public speaking, you’ll find that it’s both a great way to share what you know with others, as well as demonstrate your own level of expertise. You can speak at local events relevant to your field, and talk about topics that you’ve dealt with on your job which might resonate with others in your line of work. In addition to sharing your expertise, you can also share your experience. There are many local organizations who would love to have someone come speak to their group about the positive and negative aspects of your career or industry. You could speak to high school groups with students who are considering going into the IT field. Or speak to members of non-profit organizations interested in facilitating knowledge-share session on IT topics. Perhaps even your own religious or social groups would be interested in having you speak on a topic.

Teach

Giving away your knowledge may seem counter-intuitive, but it’s actually a great way to gain a relevant perspective on what you’ve learned over the years, and helps foster your own credibility as an expert in your field. Not only that, but studies show that your own understanding on a subject increases when you attempt to teach it to someone else. In addition to these benefits, there are many opportunities to teach what you know to others in your local community. Many schools are looking for technical professionals to serve as an instructor for their students, whether in the classroom or online. And youth organizations like TechCorps or BDPA HSCC are always looking for volunteers to teach youth computer skills that they can use to pursue careers in technology.

Text

No, I don’t mean pull out your phone and mentor someone via SMS. But I do suggest that by sharing our expertise and experience through writing, we can find another avenue in which to give back. In today’s world, one of the easiest ways to do this is by starting a blog. This can come in many forms. You may find that you simply want to keep an online ‘journal’ of your saga as an IT professional. Or you may take the more technical route and share technology-specific information about problems you’ve solved, and how you did it. Both have value to others who may find your blog, and you may soon find your writings being followed by others who are interested in your perspectives. Writing can also come by way of social media – learn to stay involved in social forums like Twitter, LinkedIn Groups, or any other online platform where other IT professionals come together to discuss issues and challenges in your industry. Not only can you learn from these forums, but your participation and contributions can be helpful to others following a career path similar to your own.

There’s no limit to the number of creative ways you can find for giving back to the IT community. Pick any one and get started – you’ll find that it not only gives you a better perspective on your own experiences, but helps strengthen and grow our IT community as well.

-Graphic art courtesy of http://gilbertyoungart.com/

The results are in! As we close out the 33rd Annual BDPA National Conference and High School Computer Competition, I’m proud to announce that the BDPA Columbus high school team scored THIRD PLACE this year out of 19 participating teams! 

This achievement earned each team member a $500 scholarship award, as well as a plaque and special recognition at the BDPA Awards Gala. This is the first time that the Columbus team has placed among the Top 5 teams, and is an improvement from last year’s 12th place prize (out of 24 teams).  I should also point out that, in the Programming category (which specifically represents the ASP.NET website development work the team did as part of the competition), they scored the 2nd highest score of 509, missing the 1st place ranking in that category by only six points!

We’re all extremely proud of this year’s team! More details to come.

I recently had an article published at IT Martini where I discuss the upcoming release of Office 365, Microsoft’s latest cloud-based services offering, and the value that the SharePoint component of that offering has for entrepreneurs and businesses trying to make use of SharePoint for collaboration.

I just finished giving a presentation via Live Meeting for an event based out of India.  Start time: 3:30AM EST.  I’m so glad that someone invented coffee :)

I think it’s very kool, tho, to have lived long enough to see a world where people all over the planet

Today I’m in Cincinnati at the Midwest Regional Mock Competition for HSCC, supporting our high school student team, and helping to serve as one of the judges during the competition.  Regional competitions are a great way for our students to begin to get a feel for what they can expect in the actual national competition in August. 

Aside from a slightly abbreviated time schedule and fewer teams to compete against, the regional mock competition offers a pretty accurate representation of the real thing.  The Cincinnati chapter of BDPA put a