It used to be that any IT person worth his salt would tell you never to write your passwords down. Memorize your password, never tell it to anyone, and guard it like you would your only daughter. That works for your network login because you only have to remember one password, but what about all of the other accounts that you have in your online life? It’s not feasible to remember more than a few passwords and it’s not safe to use the same password for multiple sites.
Time Management: Delegation
One of the common questions we get from entrepreneurs is “How do I find the time?” or, put in the phrase of a restraint, “I never seem to have enough time.” It’s common in corporate management training to hear the word “delegate” repeated like a mantra, but it does take some time to understand what delegation means.
The GSD Method
A very good Office Manager I once worked with coined a phrase around our office that she eloquently titled “GSD.” Not to be confused with David Allen’s GTD or Getting Things Done, although at a high level it did share some aspects, GSD just meant “Get Shit Done.”
Licensing: Commercial vs Free vs Open Source
Because one of the things that we do at Mystech involves software design, the question of licensing is one that has come up quite often. It’s an argument that can still start a flame war in a lot of locales on the internet with evangelists on all sides. The bottom line, for us, is that different licenses work for different programs. So, when do we use different licenses? It really came down to support.
Certification vs Education
I was recently asked to speak at the Real World Academy, a symposium for educators at different colleges to discuss what skills businesses are hiring. It’s a great event because it’s easy for academic institutions to get disconnected from the job market which leads to potential candidates that are not qualified after their education.
One of the questions that came up, because my background is in information technology, was “What is more important — Certifications or Education?” It came up in the context of what hiring managers look for on a resume in IT. The answer isn’t a simple one.
Metric Mistakes
There are three mistakes that are common to managers when it comes to metrics. It happens with new managers, but even those who feel that management is old hat sometimes forget about the pitfalls of metrics. At Mystech, we do business analytics and metrics with statistical relevance are very important, but it helps to take them with a grain of salt.
Adversity
“What’s the hardest problem you’ve ever had to solve?” This is an interview question that I use quite often. Unless you’ve interviewed with me before (or you’ve read this blog entry before coming to interview with me) chances are it’s going to catch you off guard.
Hire Smarter
David Ogilvy, a successful business man, marketer, and advertising agent, is purported to have said “Hire people who are better than you are, then leave them to get on with it. Look for people who will aim for the remarkable, who will not settle for the routine.” There are many quotes that are attributed to Ogilvy, but they all surmise to the same thing: Hire people smarter than you are, with the drive to go far.