Maybe it is just me, but these monthly block parties seem to be coming around quicker and quicker as time continues to fly by. My good friend Jeffrey Verheul (Blog | @DefJef) is getting the opportunity to host this month and he wants to know about “SQL Family and the Community”.

If you have been around SQL long enough you will find out that the terms SQL Family and Community are mentioned often. For me, and my experiences, it is a close knit group of data professionals that are willing to share their life experiences, everyday issues, problems solving skills, idea bouncing, and much more. I have been involved with SQL for over 14 years now and only the last 4 years have I been active in the community; not because I didn’t want to, but I was not privy to the magnitude of how far the SQL Family and Community reach is.

It’s no secret for those who know me. I’m sports oriented; having played baseball, football, soccer, and basketball my whole life and then college basketball I’ve been around team oriented methodologies my whole life. That background has it’s pros and cons, but the disciplines and insights I garnered from those experiences has fit nicely with being a Data Professional.

Having those days behind me for the most part (yes I am an avid runner still and do partake in a good game of basketball at times) my team now is the SQL Community.

Pre-Game

Preparing for a big game you have to look at the whole picture. Countless hours of practice, repetition, running play after play goes into a season not to mention conditioning. The camaraderie built during those times with your teammates enables you to trust them on the court. Guess what, being a data professional you have to be all in. To me that means continuous work day in and day out to help hone your skill set, and part of that work has been working with the SQL Community and Family.

The Game

G-A-M-E-T-I-M-E

The day of the game is here and it’s go time. You look at your teammates (SQL Community) and you are in a huddle right before tip off. The opponent is huge, a foot taller than your tallest guy, yet you are determined. This is what you’ve prepared for. Will you rise to the challenge?

• You will get assists in your career where you were stumped and didn’t have a clue; then someone from the SQL Community will provide you with that spark that enables you to get over the hump.
• You will grab that rebound when someone, other than you is stumped, and pick that person up when they need help.
• You will block that shot when a someone is wanting SA rights to your server.

When your number is called to come into the game (becoming active in the SQL Community) will you answer the call? Will you come into the game with an attitude of we got this? Have you prepared?

Outcome of Game

A team is just that; a team. I remember vividly to a point in time when we were in the off season, but conditioning. We had already completed multiple wind sprints and were wrapping up running intervals. Getting to the finish line we looked back and one of our teammates was struggling. He was to the point of running then stopping; did we leave him out there? A resounding NO – the ones that finished ran back out and surrounded our teammate. He was part of our team and no way were we going to let him struggle alone, and hopefully; we could give him the confidence to finish. That to me epitomizes the SQL family and community. Sure we are a finicky bunch at times, frustration occurs, and we don’t always get along. That happens on every team; however at the end of the day we have each others back. We win as a team and lose as a team.

Summary

If you are not active in the SQL Community then you are missing out. It’s time; the horn has sounded and the game is on. Time is ticking down; will you get in the game? A saying that a coach told me a long time ago has stuck with me ~ “Somewhere someone is practicing getting better; what will you be doing?” Let’s make this Community the best we can.

What is T-SQL Tuesday

T-SQL Tuesday is a recurring blog party, that was started by Adam Machanic (Blog | @AdamMachanic). Each month a blog will host the party, and everyone that want’s to can write a blog about a specific subject. If you are interested and have been blogging for a bit drop Adam a line.