Well, since it’s now public knowledge, my time at Dell is ending soon. More details on my next challenge will be coming soon.
In the meantime, I have a lot of people to say “thank you” and “so long” to. Who knew that in 9 years, I’d make so many good friends? Here’s a few things I learned in my first 9 years of software and test automation development:
- Everything scales, and often quickly.
- Code review can be an amazing learning experience if you treat it as one.
- Be at least as complimentary as you are critical.
- You now is a completely different person than you 6 months ago, or 6 months from now. You won’t remember why, so document it.
- Spend the time now to design and document, and it will pay off dividends in the future.
- Invest in people more than technology. Tools, languages, and ideas come and go, but people are the constant. Good, motivated people will be the real difference between mediocre and exceptional.
- Take the time to mentor. All of us who got to senior level, did so on the shoulders of the people who took the time to listen, empathize, ask, and advise.
- Make sure to thank the people who help and inspire you. You never know when they’ll be gone.
Onto the next challenge.
I really like that you all host Community College classes over there, at the Fort Collins' campus. That does not only lower the barrier to education access, but it also reveals to many that engineering -as a general problem solving practice - comes natural to all humans, every day. It makes it less intimidating. It reduces the gap between what is intangible (the abstract concept of engineering as a demanding discipline) and what is tangible (what one can do in any capacity to innovate on an efficiency project or cost reduction initiative.)