Working Hard vs Working Smart

Many of us who played sports often heard the phrase, "There is no I in team." Teamwork is a wonderful thing when utilized properly. Recently, while I was on a consulting project, I noticed that my client had a person on staff who thought working long hours and doing all the work himself should automatically make him eligible for large bonuses and raises. What this person failed to realize is that management also looks at how people work as a team. Sharing information, and cross training your colleagues should not be taboo in a professional technology environment. If we have learned anything at all, we should understand that a single point of failure can also occur from a knowledge management standpoint. It is dangerous for a company to have only one person on staff who completely understands and hordes vital information on pertaining to critical business systems. In my experience, documenting processes and procedures according to the Scientific Method is the best way to communicate effectively. If we think back to our days in a science lab, we will remember that the scientific method is used to others can repeat the exact same procedure so they can confirm the results. Yet, all too often, the documentation I see in professional environments is lacking the necessary details to actually accomplish the task. When putting together a technical procedure document, always assume that your reader is not technical. Try to write it so the janitor could pick it up and accomplish the task. Rather than worrying about writing yourself out of a job, focus on new technology and additional value you can add by continuing to produce valuable material. The law of attraction demonstrates that you get what you focus upon. If you are not familiar with this law, you should watch the movie entitled, "The Secret". It is available at www.thesecret.tv