To certify or not to certify
that is the question.
Whether tis nobler in our careers to suffer
the jeers and taunts of being only experienced
Or to take up books against the exams
And by passing end them? To work: to stagnate;
No more; and by stagnate to say we end
The dispair and the thousand questions of our knowledge
The DBAs are heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd. To work: to stagnate;
To stagnate: perchance to show what we may do
When we have freedom to grow and gather skills
Must give us pause: there's the respect
That comes from the efforts of those who toil;
For those who would bear the scorn of HR
The oppressors of the practical DBA,
The derision cast upon those whose name hath no letters following
No travellor on this journey returns
Regretting efforts spent and knowledge gained
O' the rewards, great can they be?
Tis not always fiscal, and not always seen
Sometimes thy acknowledgement is only from within
Take heart ye undecided, and choose a road
For each has its own rewards.

Apologies to the scholars out there, but I thought this might be a fun break. Inspired by a couple contrary articles on certification: IT Certifications Declining in Value and Redmond's 12th Annual IT Salary Survey: Break out the Bubbly Redmond's 12th Annual IT Salary Survey: Break out the Bubbly.

Steve Jones

The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

The podcast feeds are now available at sqlservercentral.podshow.com to get better bandwidth and maybe a little more exposure :). Comments are definitely appreciated and wanted, and you can get feeds from there.

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Today's podcast features music by Everyday Jones. No relation, but I stumbled on to them and really like the music. Support this great duo at www.everydayjones.com.

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