The post titled, The Problem with MVPs, by Steve Barbour was interesting because it makes you think about the thousands of MVPs around the world and what their value really is. Having been the recipient of multiple MVP awards, it’s an opportunity to reflect and judge my own performance. This is not a dangerous thing to do, but quite the opposite. If a person believes in self improvement, then critical analysis is an important part of that process.
A lot of MVPs will tell you that they would be doing the same thing, regardless of whether they were an MVP or not; helping others in the community, which is also where I prefer to hang my hat. I’ve never defined myself as an expert and never will; this determination is left to others. In fact, let me just come out and say it, “I don’t know everything”. Shocked? Sometimes the gap between expectations and reality extends beyond a reasonable measure.
Being labeled as a technical expert feels good for one's self esteem and is certainly a useful motivational technique. A problem can emerge though when an individual believes, too much, in what they are told. The problem is not with a pat on the back, but with a person does with the positive reinforcement. Is narcissism too strong a word? How often have you been in a public forum reading a demeaning response to a question that only serves in attempt to raise the stature of the person providing the response? Such behavior compromises one’s credibility, raises questions about validity of the MVP award, and is limited in community value.
I’m currently under consideration for another MVP award on April 1st. If it happens, it will be good. Otherwise, I’ll keep writing articles, coding open source software, and whatever else I enjoy doing; with the best reward being that people find value in what I do.
Joe
Responding to a tweet I received, asking if I found it hard to write a blog and keep it interesting. This is one of the situations where a 140 character response doesn’t do a question justice. There’s a lot to think about between the subjects of writing, subject matter, and entertainment. Here’s my take on each of these three topics:
There’s all types of writing you can do with various degrees of difficulty. If you’re writing a book and you have a gazillion editors bleeding over your every utterance, then the task becomes harder because you’re second-guessing yourself, not knowing whose opinion will be violated. However, if you’re communicating in a public forum, not too many people care about the grammar as much as whether what you have to say is correct. For a blog, I would say it’s somewhere in-between. Right now, I’m using Windows Live Writer, which gives me a few advantages to just typing into the blog editor, such as spelling correction and the ability to save my work and resume later. Overall, writing is one of those things that you just need to get used to. It’s an essential skill for developers because you need to document your work, depending on what your definition of proper documentation is, and communicate with other developers via various communications mediums. Not beign good (or not thinking that you’re good) shouldn’t hold you back. Like most things in life, practice will improve your skill. So, push away that inner voice that keeps you from moving forward and just do it.
A good grasp on the subject matter you’re writing about helps. However, don’t let a lack of knowledge stop you from writing about something. I recall reading something a while back by a developer who didn’t know a technology but wrote about their experience in learning it. They ended up learning more by expressing their thoughts in writing. If you look around at many blogs today, there are some items written by developers learning what they’re writing about. So, whether you are sure or unsure, you can still write – just be honest with yourself and your readers about what you’re writing. Also, don’t be afraid to have a different opinion or worry if someone will disagree. I’ll freely admit that it took a while for me to become accustomed to being criticized. Take the good with the bad and use the bad to make yourself better. Guaranteed, someone will disagree with one or more parts of what I’ve written here or think they have a better approach. No problem, more power to them, and whatever constructive comments they have will be a benefit to me in the future; Otherwise, to h*ll with them. :) Every time you get knocked down, get right back up, dust the dirt off your backside, and keep moving forward. You’ll learn in time how to align a subject with your own presentation of the material.
Entertainment could be hard or could be natural, depending on the personality of yourself and your target audience. It’s even more challenging because you can say something you think is funny and someone will be offended. In fact, there are a lot of things that you shouldn’t say in the name of a joke, but I won’t mention any of them here for want of not offending anyone. Of course, I probably offended someone by saying that and there is probably an organization somewhere in the world out to get me now. I’m probably not the best person to be giving you advice on entertaining an audience. I mean, every time I try to tell a joke on Twitter 10 people unfriend me. Okay, maybe 15, but you get my point. One thing you might be interested in knowing is that it’s not too hard for one technical person to entertain other technical people, especially when the subject is of interest. It’s the excitement in each sentence and passion in each paragraph that will keep another developer entertained and interested in what you have to say. Not everyone will like what you’ve written, but the important part is to find your own voice and it’s likely that there is one person in some corner of the world that likes what you have to say, even if it’s your mom and she doesn’t understand a single word you write. :)
If I could leave you with one final thought; Just do it and don’t let anyone or anything hold you back.
Joe
I received an email from Amazon.com today, essentially cutting off my affiliate status because I'm in Colorado. Colorado recently passed legislation that requires retailers to either collect sales tax for on-line transactions or engage in an onerous process that makes you wish you had collected sales tax. After I Tweeted this, Mike Jones tweeted a link to the legislation. Here's an excerpt from Amazon.com's email:
"Dear Colorado-based Amazon Associate:
We are writing from the Amazon Associates Program to inform you that the Colorado government recently enacted a law to impose sales tax regulations on online retailers. The regulations are burdensome and no other state has similar rules. The new regulations do not require online retailers to collect sales tax. Instead, they are clearly intended to increase the compliance burden to a point where online retailers will be induced to "voluntarily" collect Colorado sales tax -- a course we won't take.
We and many others strongly opposed this legislation, known as HB 10-1193, but it was enacted anyway. Regrettably, as a result of the new law, we have decided to stop advertising through Associates based in Colorado. We plan to continue to sell to Colorado residents, however, and will advertise through other channels, including through Associates based in other states.
There is a right way for Colorado to pursue its revenue goals, but this new law is a wrong way. As we repeatedly communicated to Colorado legislators, including those who sponsored and supported the new law, we are not opposed to collecting sales tax within a constitutionally-permissible system applied even-handedly. The US Supreme Court has defined what would be constitutional, and if Colorado would repeal the current law or follow the constitutional approach to collection, we would welcome the opportunity to reinstate Colorado-based Associates.
Your Associates account has been closed as of March 8, 2010, and we will no longer pay advertising fees for customers you refer to Amazon.com after that date. Please be assured that all qualifying advertising fees earned prior to March 8, 2010, will be processed and paid in accordance with our regular payment schedule. Based on your account closure date of March 8, any final payments will be paid by May 31, 2010.
We have enjoyed working with you and other Colorado-based participants in the Amazon Associates Program, and wish you all the best in your future.
Best Regards,
The Amazon Associates Team"