I think most people in our profession are hard workers, yet in some ways we are lazy. If there is an easier way to do things, perhaps using PowerShell or some scripting, then we do it. That isn’t a bad thing. Still there are some things in life that are just hard work. Achieving a work / life balance is hard work. Exercising, eating right, and staying healthy is hard work. Learning new things is hard work. There doesn’t seem to be a lazy way to achieve these things. Perhaps that is where goals come in.

Now I am not a person that generally makes New Year’s resolutions, but I do find that having some goals help in life. For example, the last four years I have completed a triathlon in July. Let me be honest with you, it is a terrible, painful event. Probably in part because I never seem to get quite as much training in as I had hoped before the race. First, there is a mile (1.5km) swim. Then 25 mile (40km) bike. Finally, you finish with a 6.2 mile (10km) run, or in my case, jog. 

Did I just wake up one day and decide to do this? No, I had always wanted to do a triathlon, but I wasn’t sure I ever would. So how did I get into doing triathlons? Well, it started with a co-worker that was doing them, and he kept telling me I should sign up for one. One day while I was at the swimming pool with my kids, I thought I would swim a few laps. I was on a swim team when I was a kid, but that was a lifetime ago. I think I did about 4 laps and was done. Still, I kept at it and over a course of about six months I was able to swim the full mile. Having a co-worker to encourage me to try something new was a big plus.

Even then, the first triathlon I did was the shorter Sprint length. It is 500m swim, 24km bike and 5km run. Then the next year I built up to the full length triathlon. Don’t get me wrong; I am just trying to finish these races. Most people are passing me by. The reason I sign up for the race every year is to have a goal that encourages me to exercise. It causes me to exercise a few times a week and do things like swim and jog which I probably wouldn’t do otherwise. The end goal helps motivate me to do the hard work.

My hope is to encourage you to think about setting a goal and then doing the hard work to achieve that goal. Perhaps it is to eat out less for lunch and instead bring a healthier lunch to work a few times a week. Or maybe you will decide to sign up for that 5km run/walk. Or maybe you will finally decide to learn PowerShell, or some new feature of SQL server you have been thinking about. Whatever it is, set your goal, break down the steps to get there and go for it. The hard work will pay off and in the end you might learn something new or get healthier in the process.

What is something hard that you have been putting off doing?