Month: August 2019

August 30, 2019

Greg Thomas

A Word on Textbooks

I went to a University bookstore a few months ago and found some old courses I took when I attended University. The concepts were similar with some welcome updates. But the prices, the prices blew me away. A standard business book was $134.95. I never paid that much for a textbook but looking through it, I could see why. Hardcover Glossy finish In Colour Updated multiple edition Students don’t need that, if you’re learning a subject for the first time you don’t need that. You need; Paperback Cheapest finish Black and white Tuition will go up over time, but books

August 29, 2019

Greg Thomas

What are your Goals?

Which should always be followed by – “Why are you doing it?” If you can’t answer why are you doing it to something you are trying to achieve. You will never achieve it. Time to find a new goal.

August 28, 2019

Greg Thomas

The Successful Software Manager

When I first became a Software Manager, I was pretty lost, not sure what to do or where to start. I was pretty lucky in that I had a strong supporting environment and picked things up over time. Recently I was reading the book – “The Successful Software Manager” by Herman Fung and this brought me back to that first day to when I wasn’t sure where to start, what to work on, where I should be focusing my time and what I should be looking to do next week, month, year, etc with the team. Over the years, I’ve

August 27, 2019

Greg Thomas

First Day, New Project

Start slow. Yes, they need you. Yes, they need your help. Yes, they need your experience. But you know nothing about the project. You know nothing about the people. You know nothing about the history, the context or the goals of what is trying to be achieved. You know nothing about what people have been through and what they need. You might have been hired to do X but what people need on the project is Y. Be flexible, be understanding, start slow, learn, present, ask questions – when you know the landscape, then deliver. As with any new team,

August 26, 2019

Greg Thomas

The Definitive Training Cost

Udemy always has a 80% off sale, amazing courses, 40 hours in content, are $12. Week long conferences are $2,400 and are a firehose of information coming at you. Courses such as Seth Godin’s altMBA are $3,850 for an immersive, group-based learning experience over six weeks. Week long, on-site courses are $7,500 (depending on the topic). Pluralsight subscriptions are $500 / year. MBAs are somewhere above $40,000+ for the program. Everyone sets their own cost, but the value, what you get out of it, what use it is to you can only be decided by you. The additional cost to

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