Some folks decry
the concept of being in a 'Hole'. For them, there is no such thing as
'Technical Debt', no such thing as maintaining weak and wobbly legacy code, no
such thing as bad designs, no such thing as under-skilled or poorly performing
co-workers, no such thing as 'fighting fires', or no such thing as management
that doesn't share the corporate vision. They just go to work and do their job,
keep their head down, and do whatever is required. Mostly.
Until the day they
are swallowed by the Hole.
This brings us to
the Forth Rules of Holes: If
you do not see the bigger picture, you just might be in a hole.
Without seeing the
'bigger picture', how can you possibly know your part of the puzzle? How can
you possibly know when you are being truly successful? How can you possibly
know where to spend your scarce time preparing for your future? In fact, how
can you possibly know that you are NOT in a Hole?
Holes are insidious,
they consume all that blindly enter. And when you are in a Hole, you can't see
out, and you eventually become accustomed to thinking that everything that you
see is all that there is, and that you need not be concerned with anything
else. Wrong! The Hole has consumed your ability to be rational.
Technology is
changing at an increasingly rapid pace. You must be watching the horizon in
order to prepare and position yourself for the future. If you don't, you won't
have much of a future in technology. Not so long ago, around 1999-2000, folks
that could only code basic HTML were very well paid. and many were unemployable just a
couple years later. Technology moves on, the Hole doesn't want you to leave -it
needs you to survive.
So look for your
horizon, scan for the future, pay attention to where you are and where you wish
to be next year. Be prepared AND keep a big picture.
(I am in the
process of compiling a more complete list of 'Rules of Holes', and in upcoming
weeks, I'll share them with you. And if you have developed your own 'Rules of
Holes', i invite you to share them with us.)