I think it was Miagi in Karate Kid that stressed balance. The CTO who is NEVER out of his cage is dangerous, likewise the one that is never available is also. It is keeping in touch with what is happening at all levels that makes him valuable. If there is one thing that American Management misses, it is that. The GROWING companies almost always have management that is active, visible and accessible - top to bottom. The ones that are dying are not. The same goes for union leaders who are really pseudo-management. The senior technicians are no different than management, they need broad focus but they must also be able to take the magnifying glass and look at the current situation. A network engineer who cannot do both is not living up to his job description. Ralph Brandt Communications Engineer HP Enterprise Services Telephone +1 717.506.0802 FAX +1 717.506.4358 Email Ralph.Brandt@pateam.com 5095 Ritter Rd Mechanicsburg PA 17055 -----Original Message----- From: Jared Mauch [mailto:jared@puck.nether.net] Sent: Friday, February 17, 2012 8:36 AM To: Brandon Butterworth Cc: nanog@nanog.org Subject: Re: common time-management mistake: rack & stack On Feb 17, 2012, at 3:17 AM, Brandon Butterworth wrote:
I have noticed that a lot of very well-paid, sometimes well-qualified, networking folks spend some of their time on "rack & stack" tasks, which I feel is a very unwise use of time and talent.
It's not a waste, it's therapeutic, breaks the monotony of a desk job, you get a bit of exercise. Doing something mindless can help clear your thoughts, engineering yoga.
+1 I find this myself, it's useful to do this, as it is to sit in with the operations team and other groups (even finance) to understand what other groups need/require. I've often found that someone is working around a problem they didn't know you could solve (easily), or is doing a large amount of manual labor when there is an API, etc. Perspective is good. I also do other work that certainly isn't a complete use of my talents that benefits others (e.g.: chaperone a field-trip at school). These are not without merits, but I do know I have my faults in perhaps reading (and responding) to NANOG too much when I should be engaged in more worthwhile tasks.
Imagine if the CFO of a bank spent a big chunk of his time filling up ATMs.
That'd be a good idea, it's too easy to become remote from reality. obviously you need the right balance - s/big//
- Jared