I believe that as we progress in our careers, some of us get successful. Actually I hope I'm wrong and most of us get successful, and feel that way. To me, being successful means that you have learned enough to do well and are earning enough money. Not that you stop learning, but you get to a place where you don't feel pressure to learn to succeed. You learn to improve yourself and because you want to, and you feel successful with your efforts.
When you get a chance to give back, I think you should. Not every time, but when you can, and feel comfortable, you should give something back to help others in your community. Charity is a common human drive for many people, and I like seeing people help others. Whether it's opening a door, answering a question, donating time or money, or something else, it's a great way to help out society overall.
One of my business partners, and founder of SQLServerCentral, is doing a great thing with one of his companies. Brian Knight, who owns Pragmatic Works, has written a nice blog post about the Charter Class for his Foundation. He has a foundation and has taken a group of people that can't make the investment in training, but want to get better at technology. Last week was the inaugural class and from the posts made by students, it was a success.
I wanted to take today to congratulate and recognize Brian and the rest of Pragmatic Works for donating their time and skills to help out others in the technology field. It's the type of helping hand that I don't see often enough in today's world. My kudos and admiration for Brian, his brother Devin, and others at Pragmatic for trying to make a difference in the world.
As my martial arts teacher says "the rising tide lifts the boats." It's not just our own effort, but the efforts of those around you that help push you along and grow your skills. Brian has provided a great example of one way to raise the skills of those around you.
Steve Jones
The Voice of the DBA Podcasts
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