Tag: pdp

Professional Development Plans: Turning Your Job Into a Career, Part 2

By on • ( 1 Comment )

Long ago in a galaxy far far away, I blogged about my Professional Development Plan (PDP). That really was a long time ago: May of 2010. Wow. I want to provide an update on my own PDP and reiterate their value. I also have a few tips to share.

Updates From Last Time

1. One of my PDP goals at that time, as I was really starting to delve deeper into Business Intelligence, was to pass the 70-448 Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Business Intelligence Development and Maintenance. I did that. I have since achieved my MCITP in 2008 BI by also passing 70-452 PRO: Designing a Business Intelligence Infrastructure Using Microsoft SQL Server 2008. I work for a consulting firm. Certifications are an important part of Microsoft Partnership criteria for our organization. So, certifications certainly do matter here. They also help me by serving as a measurement of my learning. I know there are people who feel that certifications have no value whatsoever since some people have learned how to game the system and get certified with little to no effort or experience. I think it is short-sighted and unfair to dismiss their value. People have learned how to steal cars relatively easily, but that does not invalidate car ownership. Now, I’m not saying that certs are everything by any means. A cert is no guarantee of aptitude, but neither is it meaningless.

2. I explained my personal goals of establishing myself as an expert and being an active member in the SQL Community. I had also listed the MVP Award as a goal. As I had explained in my previous PDP post, the MVP itself was not truly a goal, but rather would a possible side-effect of achieving my personal goals of community support and expertise. Since the MVP is an award, and not something with a definitive roadmap, having it as a goal is silly. I have removed that. Don’t get me wrong, it would be cool. But MVP is something that happens to you, not something you go get in a definitive fashion.

New Goals

Sextants and Compases1. It was back in May of 2010 that I fully decided to pursue Business Intelligence as a career path. I have learned a lot since then and have been on an engagement dealing directly with SSAS since December. I am loving it and learning more every day. I am also learning about Master Data Services (there will likely be a presentation/blog series on this in the future). I have started learning MDX and even presented on it several times. My goal is to keep forging ahead with the SQL 2012 BI tools including Power View (which is just friggin awesome) and the new SSAS Tabular Model. There’s just so much to learn. Dig it!

2. Blogging. Yeah. I have on my PDP a goal to blog twice per month. Well. Yeah. Not doing so hot on that one. I am doing better than I have in that past, but many of my posts of late have been about upcoming presentations. Those are important to me, but I promise I have some cool content coming. I am planning some blog series and I also have another writing project that I am working on that I am not ready to discuss yet.

3. Presenting. I have had on my PDP for some time that I want to present at least 3 times per year. Well. I have knocked this one out of the park. I have already done more presenting in 2012 than in the previous years of my career combined. And I intend to keep it up. I don’t think I am being overconfident when I say that presenting is something I have a talent for. Absolutely loving it helps a lot, too.

4. PASS Regional Mentor. I spent 3 years on the executive board of the Minnesota chapter of PASS, PASSMN. I have taken a few years off from that and now I am anxious to get back into community involvement. I would like to try something different this time around. My favorite part of community involvement is helping people and evangelizing SQL Server the SQL Community. RM seems a great fit for that. Thus, earlier this week, I let SQLPASS HQ know of my desire to become a PASS Regional Mentor. I am looking forward to hearing back about interviewing for the role. I am really excited about the possibility and feel that I could do a great job.

PDP Tips

Road Signs1. My original PDP post was in May 2010. It is now July of 2012. More than two years. In that time, my maintenance of my PDP has been less than awesome. I have also had periods in there, some long ones, actually, where no PDP progress was made at all. This brings me to my first tip: Cover Your Nut. That is an old Sales adage. It means, above all, do at least enough to pay your bills and maintain the status quo. There were periods where it took everything I had just to do my daily work and extra stuff just didn’t happen. There will be times when going above and beyond is just too far above and beyond what you are able to do. I urge you to be OK with that at the time. Doing more than you can handle is not a sustainable behavior; it will just lead to burnout. That said, get back to your PDP and making steps toward your goals when you can.

2. Find a mentor. Your mentor does not have to be someone older or a wizard or anything. It really can just be someone you discuss your PDP and your goals with. Having someone like that can help you stay on track and even offer advice on steps to take, etc. My own SQL Server consulting career started when Lara Rubbelke (b|t) hired me at Digineer. Lara was a great mentor for me. When she moved on to Microsoft, direct mentorship became a bit more difficult, although it is still great to chat with her about my career every now and then when we can. The person filling the role of my mentor today is Jason Strate (b|t). His knowledge of SQL Server is really impressive and he has a willingness and a knack for helping people out. I get a lot of good advice from him on blogging, presenting, and networking, as well. When it comes to more Business Intelligence focused topics, Dan English (b|t) has helped me out as well. After seeing my MDX Trek: First Contact presentation, he emailed me some valuable feedback that helped me polish it up. All of the people mentioned above have great expertise and are more than willing to share.

3. The best PDP related tip I can give is this: HAVE A PDP. It does not have to be anything especially rigid or come with drill sergeant. But working toward turning your job into a career is a lot easier when you know what you want that career to look like.

I’m going to try to be better about keeping my PDP updated. I will also make sure my next PDP update blog post doesn’t take over two years to happen.

Professional Development Plans: Turning Your Job Into a Career

By on • ( 12 Comments )

This past Thursday, I watched a Live Meeting webcast by Andy Warren (Twitter | Blog) on Building a Comprehensive Professional Development Plan. Thanks to Jorge Segarra (Twitter | Blog) for organizing it. The recording can be found here.

Andy provides a lot of great food for thought and I highly recommend taking time to watch it. I won’t simply regurgitate it all here. But here are a few of the key points I wanted to focus on:

  • No one is going to build your career for you. You have to take ownership of that yourself.
  • Building your career requires resources like time and sometimes money. The key is to find a balance that prevents burnout and makes the best use of the funds you have available.
  • Writing is important. The ability to convey your ideas and share your knowledge well can go a long way toward building your brand.
  • Networking can be a very important part of increasing awareness of your brand. You may even find yourself a good mentor in the process.

At Digineer, the consulting firm I work for, we have formal Professional Development Plans. That is one of the  many aspects I love about Digineer: they want their employees to continue to grow and develop and they provide support in doing just that.

I want to stress that the idea of a PDP is not just for technical folks. In my opinion, one can apply a PDP in pretty much any industry or area of focus.

Before I get into my own PDP, I think it makes sense to explain a bit about what my overall goals are as a person. You will see later that my PDP goals tie in well with my personal goals.

The following poem on Success is actually a very accurate depiction of my general goals for myself in life. I think people who know me well will be able to see my behavior and attitude represented in these lines. This poem is often attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson; although there is some controversy about that.

Success
Goal
To laugh often and much;
to win the respect of intelligent people 
   and the affection of children;
to earn the appreciation of honest critics 
   and endure the betrayal of false friends;
to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others;
to leave the world a bit better,
   whether by a healthy child,
   a garden patch
   or a redeemed social condition;
to know even one life has breathed easier
   because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded.

My PDP has both short-term and long-term goals. I find it helps if I have some goals that are more immediate so that I can prioritize and keep myself going. I have also taken long term goals and broken them up into component parts as short term goals. That way, my short term goals can essentially provide the roadmap to my long term goals, allowing me to make progress in strides and effectively track that progress.

My most immediate short term goal is to pass the MCTS SQL Server 2008  Business Intelligence Development and Maintenance (70-448) exam by June 30th 2010. I want to point out that the true goal is not merely passing the exam and getting a cert, but rather to learn the material. Taking the exam is merely the measurement of how I have learned that material. And, when all is said and done, certifications certainly don’t hurt. Note: One of the reasons I have June 30th as a deadline is that June 30th also happens to be the deadline for the free retake as part of the Second Shot promotion. I take my first shot on June 1st.

The long term goal I wish to share is a lofty one. The following quote comes from here:

“The MVP Award recognizes exceptional technical community leaders from around the world who voluntarily share their deep, real-world knowledge about Microsoft technologies with others.”

Like with my certification goal above, the credential itself is not the real goal. Rather, it is the measurement of accomplishing my true goals. The MVP jacket is cool, as is the MVP logo you can put on your blog and in your email auto signature; but it’s not about any of that. If I can earn the right to be an MVP, then that means that I have, on a professional level, accomplished many of the the goals I have in life within the SQL community:

  • Win the respect of intelligent people
  • Earn the appreciation of honest critics 
  • Know even one life has breathed easier because I have helped them through my blog, a presentation, twitter, client engagements, etc

My plan for achieving this goal involves several steps, which map to the points gleaned from Andy’s PDP presentation.

I am taking charge of my own career by spending resources improving my knowledge and skills within SQL Server. In addition to reading blogs and attending meetings at my local chapter of PASS (PASSMN), I also attended SQL Saturday Chicago (which was a great means of networking as well a source of quality information). While the registration for the event itself was free, i did incur travel and lodging costs for my time in Chicago. And I have to say my experience was worth every penny and then some.

In terms of writing, I have established the blog you are currently reading. While I don’t post as often as I would like, I am working on that.

In terms of networking, don’t underestimate the power of “social media.” The SQL community on Twitter is remarkable. While many people do use twitter for just inane banter and letting all of their followers know every time they sit down, stand up, go to the bathroom, breathe, etc, the SQL community is a shining example of using Twitter for broadcasting relevant, quality information. I evangelize Twitter within my own area whenever I can. It is through my blog and presenting that I am building my own brand. It is through Twitter that I am building awareness of that brand.

By monitoring the #sqlhelp hash tag on Twitter, I have also had opportunities to help others in the community. That is not only a fantastic way to reach out for help, but also a way to make an impact by helping out someone else.

I am also currently preparing my abstract for a presentation submission for the PASS Summit in November. I have presented at PASSMN a few times and also within Digineer, as well. Presentations can help you to build your brand and are an awesome excuse to dig deeper into a topic that interests you.

All of these steps are the means by which I am attempting to become a technical community leader who shares deep, real-world knowledge about SQL Server with others. Hm…sound familiar?

I agree with Andy that establishing and maintaining a Professional Development Plan is a great way drive your own future. This goes for non-technical folks as well. I believe that a PDP, and the investment of time (and sometimes money) toward achieving the goals within, is a fantastic step toward turning you job into a career.