Search results matching tags 'professional development' and 'Tips'

Two New Slide Decks. Plus, the Week in Colorado.

KKline — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 15:03:00 GMT

I had the honor of traveling the great state of Colorado last week, speaking at the PASS chapters in Boulder, Colorado Springs, and Denver. At all three events, we had a stellar attendance and, at least in Denver, broke all the records in recent memory both in terms of overall attendance and in first-timers. Denver, in fact, was standing room only and had nearly 30 first time attendees. Great news! I also want to give a special shout-out of thanks and appreciation to Chris Shaw (Twitter | Blog) whose hard work and tenacity ensured that all of Colorado got to see me speak. From left to right, Gabriel Villa (Twitter), me, Chris Shaw, and Rebecca Mitchell (Twitter). If it weren't for Chris, I wouldn't have been there. Thanks for putting in the time, amigo!

New Slide Decks!

During the 3-day jaunt, I presented two of my more popular sessions. These are updated slide decks, in case you want to download them here:

UG - End-to-End Troubleshooting

and

UG - Top 10 SQL Server Administration Mistakes

Be sure to check in the Slides area of the website, if you want to see the links for SpeakerRate, and in the case of several of my presentations, white papers, video recordings, etc. It's the People that Matter

A Blast from the SQLPASS Past!

I've always tried to maintain the relationships I built with the founding members of the PASS board of directors. After their time on the PASS board, almost all of them have moved on from SQL Server to other adventures. Pam Smith, the first president of the organization, is now a professor. Guy Brown, the second president, is now the director of IT at his same employer, rather than just SQL Server as when he was on the PASS board. A few, such as Kurt Windisch, a former VP of PASS, and my good friend Joe Webb (Twitter | Blog), are still active in the SQL Server space. One relationship that I've enjoyed over the years is with PASS' original Microsoft liaison and now a Denver-area software entrepreneur Steve Murchie (at right) running his own healthcare IT outfit. Steve has been a source of inspiration to me and also of great advice for all things startup-related. It was great to connect with Steve and catch up on his latest doings.

I also got to enjoy an evening out with the local attendees after the Denver user group meeting. It was great to hang out with folks there. I got to meet Kevin Cox (twitter), a member of Microsoft's incredibly talented SQLCAT group, and for whom I was a technical editor on a SQL Server v6.5 book back in the Neanderthal era. That shows just how old both Kevin and I actually are. Other cool folks that I got to meet included Steve Wake, Mike Fal, Marc Beacom, Jason Kassay, Jason Horner and my ol' buddy, Kelly the Greeley Geek.

On top of that, long-time SQL Server MVP and all-around awesome guy Steve Jones (Twitter | Blog) visited. I kept him out way too late that night which, to be honest, isn't usually my style. But the good conversation propelled us on past midnight.

The Good Folks at SQL Server Professional and Windows IT Professional Magazines

I've written for SQL Server Professional (formerly the artist known as "SQLMag") in some form or another starting from my first cover article for them way back in the mid 1990's. My Tool Time column has been going strong there since, oh, around 2006 iirc. For most of the time I've known the folks at SQLMag, they were located in Loveland, CO but they were able to move to some incredibly nice digs just up the road in Fort Collins. In all the many years, I've written for them, I'd never been to their offices - until now. It was great to visit and break bread with Megan (to my right), Blair (across), and Jaylee (across and to my right)!

I've always supported SQLMag and encourage you to subscribe. On top of the goodness already in the digital magazine, there are some neat developments coming down the pipeline with SQLMag which I think we'll all enjoy. Be sure to subscribe today! (You can click the badge on the left or simply go to http://www.sqlmag.com).

What's Next?

My current travel schedule is pinned up on this blog post HERE. However, I also know of a couple on-line appearances and probably a trip between the long gap between now and my next in-person appearance at the Orlando SQL Saturday at the end of September, where I'll also be teaching a pre-conference seminar (register HERE for the seminar).

SSWUG

The first on-line event to note is my a presentation by SSWUG of my Leadership Skills for IT Professionals video series, starting on August 24th. Sign up using the hyperlink (note that a video plays immediately upon loading the webpage, in case you want to be ready to pause or stop it). You can also buy a DVD set of the 14 hours of leadership training content.

24HOP - The 24 Hours of PASS Event

I'll also be speaking on the topic of influence in the next 24 Hours of PASS coming up on September 20th and 21st. Registration for the twenty-four hours of around the clock presentations is completely free and well worth your time. Check the schedule for the event and register! Even if you can only watch one or two sessions (or even zero sessions), be sure to register so that you'll automatically be notified when the sessions become available as streaming media.

Enjoy!

-Kev

-Follow me on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook

New Developments at SQLServerPedia.com

KKline — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 17:07:00 GMT

What's Going on at SQLServerPedia.com?

Since the news broke that I was leaving Quest, I've gotten a lot of questions about the future of SQLServerPedia.com (SSP). For those of you who don't know, SSP is a very popular community wiki and blog aggregator with nearly one hundred bloggers actively syndicating their content on the site. Quest actively supports SSP as a non-commercial community entity and I was its former editor-in-chief. The good news is that SSP is not going anywhere. If you write for a blog that appears on SSP, don't change a thing. (Ok, change one thing. Start adding more content to the wiki!)

Maybe I Should Syndicate at SQLServerPedia.com?

If you're actively blogging but not currently syndicating your content there, do so! Details for syndicating on SSP are located here. A few reminders and changes worth noting from what is written on the syndication page:

Under section 1.4, 'What if You Don't Have a Blog Yet?', the team is no longer able to help you with setting up, editing, and fact checking blog posts.
Related to the item above, we vastly prefer to syndicate blogs demonstrating at least six months of active posting. Many bloggers start with good intentions and then fade away. Usually, if you've done it for six months, you're in it for the long haul. Although exceptions are made occasionally, your certain to be accepted as a syndicate with six months of posts.
No posting about commercial products (or even free products offered by commercial entities). That rule also applies to Quest people. Just keepin' it real, folks!
Limit the topics to those that are of interest to SQL Server people. The topics can be about non-SQL Server things, such as other related technologies, leadership, productivity, personal development, and so forth. But it should be at least relevant and interesting to SQL Server people.

Aside from that, what are you waiting for?!? Don't you want thousands more reads on your blog per week without adding inappropriate references to Justin Bieber (blog | twitter), American Idol (blog | twitter), and teen-pop sensation One Direction (blog | twitter)? (You saw what I just did there, didn't you?)

One Tiny Achievement

One thing I'm proud of while I was editor-in-chief at SSP was to evangelize the citation syntax that now seems to be standard practice in the blogging world of "Blogger Name (blog_link | twitter_link)." I wrote about this blog citation syntax first in March of 2010. I'm proud of that. I also introduced badges for site contributors, like the one below.

Aside from those things, I don't think I really moved the needle much because, honestly, I already had too much other work on my plate.

And the New SQLServerPedia.com Editor-in-Chief IS... [drumroll]

... my friend and former colleague, Richard Douglas. Richard Douglas is a SQL Server consultant for Quest Software in the UK covering the gamut of SQL Server products in both a pre- and post-sales capacity. Richard is often performs on-site server health checks to ensure systems are running optimally and to provide feedback on problem areas of database performance. Prior to working for Quest, Richard was working as a DBA in women's clothing. Hmmm, let me clarify. No ... he was not working IN women's clothing. He wore regular men's clothing. The company he worked for was in the womens' clothing business. Whew! That's better. In fact, here's a picture to prove that he, at least occasionally, wears men's clothing:

Richard is active in the UK SQL Server community having been a volunteer at SQLBits. He now runs a PASS chapter and is on the organizing committee for SQLRelay, a series of events around the UK which drew hundreds of attendees this year, he holds several certifications in SQL Server 2008.

Richard's online presence includes: email Richard.Douglas@Quest.com, blog http://SQL.RichardDouglas.co.uk, twitter http://twitter.com/SQLRich, and LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/in/richardpdouglas. Please take a moment to say hi!

Enjoy,

-Kevin

-Follow me on Twitter!

Information Hoarder No More!

KKline — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 14:16:00 GMT

I hate to admit it, but I'm a hoarder. Yes, like those insane people on the A&E TV show. Only my hoarding is all virtual. For example, take the image above. That's just a tiny part of my Google Reader home page. That's a tiny part of my Google Reader home page AFTER reading most of the day on a recent Sunday. I still had thousands of entries to go after hours of reading. On top of that, I subscribe to some technical e-newsletters. I'm a member of quite a few LinkedIn discussion groups, each of which produce daily and weekly newsletters. (I only subscribe to the weekly versions). Then there's Twitter too. In all, there are THOUSANDS of interesting floating through the ether which I'd been trying to collect and, occassionally, read. Bah humbug!

The Downside of an Information Hoard

You might think that, as an IT professional, hoarding information is good for you. After all, the more you know, the more effective you are at your job, right? Uh - no. I've discovered a few downsides to keeping all of this information around. First, I lose time on administrivia, uh, I mean administration. I can't think of a time when a search on Google has not produced the information that I'm interested in. So by spending time keeping up with my blog feeds, adding new blog feeds, deleting old ones, and so on, I lose time administrating something that really doesn't need to be administrated.

Second, there's the time it takes to read all of these entries - many long hours to read thousands of entries per month. I've actually figured out a little trick to make this go a lot faster. What's that trick? Well, previously, I used to start reading my entries and then clicking "Next Entry" each time. Even when I skipped a lot of entries, just slogging through them all was a big time drain. Now, I simply select large swathes of entries that I'm not interested in and click "Mark as Read" without ever opening them. Works great! I've also gotten a lot more aggressive about dropping bloggers and RSS feeds that offer low value. A lot of bloggers have popped up who only recount things which are available in Books On-Line. Why spend any time on that at all? I'm looking for strong insight, experiences, and analysis - not simple technology facts. (A follow on thought to this tip is that "Bloggers Should Write Meaningful Article Titles!")

Third, and more importantly, information hoarding takes a big emotional toll on me. Maybe it's a factor of just how my brain works and is completely inapplicable to you. But in my case, I always carry a subtle nagging feeling when I have unread entries in my various accounts. Even when I know that these entries are optional and that it's not necessary for me to read any of these things, I still feel like I should read them. Basically, it makes me feel like I should be working all the dang time and that makes me feel anxious. Anxiety makes me less productive and more prone to burn-out. And anxiety bleeds through my work hours into my home life. It makes it hard to enjoy a movie with the kids or some gardening in the yard. All because there's that feeling that I haven't gotten the hoard processed yet.

The Solution to the Information Hoard

I mentioned a couple specific techniques for thinning out the hoard in paragraph two. To summarize, first, subscribe to only those bloggers, feeds, and newsletters which add actual understanding to your life. Second, open and read only those entries that matter and skip the rest. Those are techniques for dealing with lots of entries to read. But my last problem, the anxiety issue, was a little bit harder to solve.

Like a lot of internal ways of handling life's problem, the answer is simple but not easy. Similar life problems with simple but difficult solutions might include feelings of guilt (the solution is confession) or anger (the solution is forgiveness, either of yourself or for the other party). So what's the solution to anxiety? Here's my thought process - the answer to my information hoard is about values. What do I mean? I value these various things because they make me better at my job. Losing things of value causes me some anxiety. My anxiety has its roots in the feeling that I'm letting things of values (these various blog entries) slip through my hands. Why would you ignore things of value, or even worse, get rid of them?!? On the other hand, if you asked me what I really and truly valued most in this world, I'd answer with "my family and loved ones". But again, do I actually demonstrate this priority with my time? Not nearly enough. Therefore, the answer is to properly appraise the value of my time. When I think about it rationally, I think that this sort of reading is worth about 30 minutes per day, maybe a full 60 minutes when there's something really important to learn or someone really significant to listen to.

That's it. After 30 minutes, I can walk away from any sort of reading guilt-free. So what's my new solution to the information hoard and the anxieties that it's been producing? A quick check on the writers and topics I care about the most and then "MARK ALL AS READ". Yes, there will be more to read tomorrow. But now I no longer carry an ever increasing load saying to myself "Someday I'll get to that". I feel better already.

Feedback Requested

What's your strategy to dealing with your information hoard? Are you still keeping everything you ever produced or read digitally? Does my approach sound reasonable and workable to you? Or am I off base?

Thanks!

-Kev

-Follow me on Twitter

Cloud Evolving, SQL Server Responding

KKline — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 14:49:00 GMT

Brent Ozar (blog | twitter) and I did an interview with TechTarget’s Brendan Cournoyer at last summer's Tech-Ed, which as turned into a podcast titled “Cloud efforts advance, SQL Server evolves.” The podcast covers all the major trends at the conference (like BI), virtualization features in Quest’s products (like Spotlight), Brent’s new book and MCM certification, and more. Here’s a link to hear it, appearing on 6/11/10: http://searchsqlserver.techtarget.com/podcast/Cloud-efforts-advance-SQL-Server-evolves.

Enjoy!

-Kev

Twitter at kekline

Top Notch Database Professionals Offer More Than Technical Prowess

KKline — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 19:02:00 GMT

I've done a poor job lately in keeping my SQLBlog posts synchronized with my professional blog. As a result, you probably haven't seen a column I've been doing on professional development for the database professional called Plays Well With Others. My apologies...

I originally started this series of posts in support of the PASS Professional Development VC, an offering that I recommend you take advantage of. However, some readers had asked that I also post this on my own blog. So if you didn't know about it or don't use the PASS website, you might want to take a look at my articles on professional development.

You can find the Plays Well With Others column here.
You can find all of my professional development blog entries here.

And if you've never looked at my blog before, you can find lots of my session recordings and slide decks here.

Let me know what you think!

Cheers,

-Kev

Significant Personnel Moves Inside of the Microsoft Azure Team and "Protect Your @#$% Content!"

KKline — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 17:57:00 GMT

Dream Team Forms Around Azure

If you're wondering whether to hedge your long-term bets on cloud computing, this should help you solidify your thinking.

Microsoft has been building a dream team for Azure, including the patriarch of Windows (and father of Windows NT) Dave Cutler. Tweets from several Microsofties reveal that another revered technologist, Mark Russinovich of SysInternals fame has also joined the team. When almost all of the heavy hitters in a company like Microsoft go to work on a single exciting new technology, you can easily tell which direction the wind is blowing. I encourage you to get on board soon with cloud computing, at least in experimentation mode. Read more about Russinovich joining the Azure team here.

Protect Your @$#% Content or

News About KevinEKline.com This Week

I've been enjoying two new features of Wordpress over on my professional website which is missing here on SQLblog.com - scheduled blog posts and auto-tweets. What got me thinking about using scheduled blog posts and auto-tweets, you ask? For starters, my friend and former colleague, Brent Ozar, put a lot of thought and time into the question "Who Owns Your Content?". Then, to add fuel to the fire, two of Quest's best marketing minds, Christian Hasker and Andy Grant, took a survey of all the places I was posting my thoughts and IP, which led to some great advice from Andy. I'd initially thought that by writing in multiple places and on many other websites, it would promote my content. But a quick analysis showed that I was giving without getting anything in return, not even recognition. I was easily writing three or four magazine style articles per month with very little to show for it, not even ping-backs to my website.

The schedule blog posts have come in very handy. First, I'd decided a while back to start talking more about what I do at Quest Software and the products that I'm a part of. Since I don't want to come across sounding like a schill, I decided that I'd put those posts on my own website and not torture you with those posts where I'm syndicated. If you're interested in posts about products like LiteSpeed or Toad for SQL Server, you can check for my regularly scheduled posts to appear on Wednesday morning. I've now got a nice little queue of Quest-related posts for many Wednesdays to come. Second, I've also decided to attempt to bring in more of the content I'd written for other websites and channels into KEK.com. So I've scheduled a series of posts that bring in other content I've written and/or recorded elsewhere. For example, Thursdays mornings are the time where I'll post my YouTube video clips. Since I already had a ton on YouTube, I'm putting those up via scheduled posts for the next several weeks. Of course, I'll also be posting new videos. But it'll be good to have all of my old videos up there too in a single place. Finally, as I mentioned before, I'd written a couple long-term columns without ever getting even one extra website hit from all that work, such as my professional development articles for SQLPass.org. I'm pulling those back onto KEK.com and will continue those columns, but as elements of my own blog. You'll see more about them here when they're posted.

Enjoy!

-Kevin

Twitter @kekline

Sequels for SQL Server: The Week of November 27, 2009

KKline — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:02:00 GMT

Just as an FYI, I've added one new slide deck and webcast to http://KevinEKline.com/Slides/, as well as quite a few upcoming user group events where I'm speaking in http://KevinEKline/Upcoming-Events/.

I'm starting a new series called Sequels for SQL Server. In this series, I point you to seven sites where you can go beyond the nose-to-the-grindstone resources that we see every day as SQL Server professionals. These are the story that comes after and outside (the sequels) of our daily working lives (the other SQL). Let's broaden our horizons together. If you hit on an interesting but overlooked topic, I'd like to hear from you at http://KevinEKline.com/.

SQL Server: We live it. We love it.

An amazing example of explosive growth in SQL Server performance using SSDs from one of the most popular on-line gaming systems, Eve On-Line by CCP Games.

Devices & Gadgets: Usually making our lives better, sometimes not so much.

Everyone I know wants the newest best smartphone, InfoWorld gives us a good test run of them all. Ultimate mobile deathmatch: iPhone vs. BlackBerry vs. Droid vs. Pre.

Futurewatch: Important issues just over the horizon.

The reshaping of our national power grid will provide profound benefits to consumers, but it will also bring enormous liabilities that could equal—or even outweigh—the very problems we hope to solve. And this webcast from O'Reilly on Grid 2.0 is also quite good.

Humor: I haz da funny.

Witness firsthand a mind-boggling worst practice by a DBA insisting that he's implementing a best practice.

Professional Development: Because there are two words in "database professional".

Peter Drucker, one of the greats in management thought-leadership, would've turned 100 last week were he alive today. Check out these top 20 quotes from the man who revolutionized management theory.

Society: Important issues to discuss with your friends and family.

Quoting the Motley Fool, "We spent the latter half of 2008 feeling the wrath of "too big to fail." Today, banks are bigger than ever. We need to end that. Now." It's Time to End "Too Big to Fail". Read this thought-provoking article soon.

WorldView: If James Bond knows that the world is not enough, then so should I.

The smartest analyst on international issues out there, Fareed Zakari, discusses US and Indian relations in this insightful article from Newsweek.

Thanks,

-Kevin

Twitter @KEKline

Where You Can Find Me At the PASS Summit

KKline — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:53:00 GMT

In previous years, I hardly had time to sit down and catch a breather at a PASS Summit. Between my duties as an officer of PASS, exhibit hall time with Quest Software (my employer), speaking in my own sessions, and meeting with PASS volunteers and community organizers, I was busy from the crack of dawn until midnight all week long.

Fortunately, those grueling marathons are fading into the past. I still have a busy slate ahead of me for next week. But it looks like I'll even have time to attend some sessions. Yeah! Here's what I've currently got planned:

Monday, Nov 2

Depart for Seattle, 5:10 am. O.M.G. - that means I have to get up before I go to bed.

Noon, arrive in Seattle

Lunch with the PASS board of directors

Networking Seminar, by Don Gabor, from 4:30 - 6:30 pm

PASS Quiz Bowl & Welcome Reception, playing in a team with the mighty BrentO, from 6:30 - 8:00 pm

SQLServerCentral Party, from 8:00 - 10:00 pm

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Tuesday, Nov 3

Keynote, 7:45 - 10:00 am

Birds of a Feather Luncheon, 11:45 - 1:00 pm, hosting the table "Moving from Technologist to Manager"

Exhibit Hall at the Quest Software booth, 11:00 - 4:00 pm

Session "The Ultimate Free SQL Server Toolkit", 3:00 - 4:15 pm, Room 615-617

Book Signing at the Quest Software booth, 6:00 - 8:00 pm, giving away signed copies of Database Benchmarking

Microsoft MVP Insider Event, until 10:00 pm

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Wednesday, Nov 4

Quest Breakfast seminar and live webcast, Simplify Management with DMVs, 7:00 - 8:30 am, along with other SQL Server luminaries BrentO, Buck Woody, Louis Davidson, and Tim Ford.

MVP Deep Dives Book Signing, 11:30 - 12:00 pm, Come out get a book signed by all the authors!

PASS Board Q&A, 4:30 - 6:15 pm, Room 6E

I'll also be popping out for meetings with various Microsoft PMs, a dinner with my Quest colleagues, and plenty of time in the exhibit hall at the Quest Software booth.

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Thursday, Nov 5

Session "Team Management Crash Course", 10:45 - 12:00 pm, Room 612

Chapter Luncheon, 12:00 - 1:00 pm, Expo Hall 4b. Come and join me, especially if you're anywhere near the local PASS chapter in Music City - Nashville, TN.

Friday, Nov 6

Early departure back to Nashville. In years past, I always had to stay until Saturday morning because of all of the important PASS work going on. The important PASS work still goes on, but it's in the able hands of a new generation of leaders. As for me, I get to head home to be with my family one day early. Yippee!

I hope to see you there. Don't forget the really awesome and cool SQL Twitter Bingo, if you're in to Twitter. The rules are HERE and the bingo cards are HERE.

Cheers,

-Kevin

Twitter @kekline

Starting the Travel Meme

KKline — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 03:31:00 GMT

'Tis the season for travel! With the PASS Summit just around the corner and lots of other interesting events waiting in the wings, such as TechEd Europe, lots of IT people will finally be allowed to stretch their wings (and budgets) to get in some first class training.

I've been a very frequent flier for a long time and seldom get surprised by much these days - exasperated, yes - but surprised, no. And I've certainly seem my share of fellow travelers doing it all wrong. The one thing they all share in common is that they're not experienced and, usually, haven't thought much about the upcoming trip. You know the type - they've packed an eighty pound carry-on and are then surprised that it neither fits in the overhead space nor is light enough to get past their waist line without a herniated disk. They're the type who stands at the security line, backing it up fifty deep, because they're trying to get a 2 liter of soda or, even worse, $50 worth of hair care products past the checkpoint despite the prominently displayed signs and constantly playing recorded reminders that you can't take any liquids or gels of more the three fluid ounces in a single quart-sized Ziploc bag.

I've got a few tips to share, and I know many of my fellow blogomaniacs do too. So I thought I'd start a meme asking my colleagues to chip in their three favorite tips for successful air travel. Just to pad the results a bit, everyone can provide three beginner tips for the infrequent traveler and three expert tips for those who might have travel a lot. Here are my tips:

Beginner Tips

Here are some useful tips if you travel three or less times per year and aren't too familiar with the ins and outs of air travel:

1. You're at risk to forget some of your stuff in those bins at the X-Ray machine at the security checkpoints, especially if you're hurrying to make a flight. An easy way to make sure that never happens is to put everything first (keys, mobile phone, belt, laptop, carry-on bag) and send your shoes in the very last bin. You might run off in a hurry without your laptop (I certainly have - once), but you WON'T run off without your shoes. Putting your shoes last means you won't forget anything else in your kit.

2. Expect annoyances and plan accordingly:

There's always a chance of delays on the tarmac, sometimes a really long delay, so stock a bag or two of mixed nuts or another hearty snack. I recommend unsalted nuts since they're filling, fend off hunger for a long time, and won't make you thirsty.
Plenty of time on the flight is "no electronics" time. Bring magazines or books to read. I, personally, enjoy writing letters (yes, using a real pen and real paper) especially to my older relatives who think computers are "of the Devil".
There will always be screaming babies and obnoxious youngsters to make a nap just so much wishful thinking. So get one of those nice sets of foam ear plugs (a dozen for two bucks!) and a nice sleep visor. You'll never see these people again, so don't worry about how you look.

3. Packing is the novice traveler's mine field. Don't pack more than you need - one more shirt and pants than days you'll be gone (in case of stains) and no more than one pair of shoes (over and above what you wear onto the plane). Unless you're traveling to a place without electricity and indoor plumbing, you can buy anything your lack.

Expert Tips

Here are some useful tips if you travel, or plan to travel a lot during the year and know all of the regular things to do:

1. American Airlines is the only airlines with standard "cigarette lighter" adapters under the seats. There's one per row in coach on their standard mid-range MD-80's and one per seat in first class. An adapter is one $20-30 at your standard drug store. I prefer unlimited power, especially for long flights, which is on reason that I'm a platinum frequent flier on AA. Delta and United have proprietary adapters that cost nearly $100.

2. Prepacking with redundancy. It sounds a little like a level of RAID, but it's really just a better way to travel if you have to do it often. First, get redundant computer equipment, such as power adapters and mice for your laptop, and toiletries so that you don't have to pack up your regular office gear for the trip. If you don't plan to do this, you will after a year or two of frequent travel because you'll simply forget each of these things enough times that you'll wind up buying doubles of most of them anyway.

3. The airline clubs are nice, really nice. But each airline has their own club and they're expensive, in the $500 range, even for high-level frequent fliers. I recommend instead that you pay the $450/yr membership fee for an American Express Platinum Card. One of the many benefits of the card is free club access to four different airline clubs, which means there's never an airport where you can't relax between flights. Another less well-known perk is that if you book travel with AmEx, they're often able to give you a "buy one get one" free deal. It's always unwritten and not posted on any website. But if you call and ask, there's a 30/70 chance that a flight between two major cities will have the deal. (Note that this is unsolicited advice and I'm not getting any sort of remuneration in any way for this recommendation.)

Tag!

From here, I'm tagging a handful of buddies who are some of the hardest travelin' folks I know - Paul Randal & Kimberly Tripp, Dr. Greg Low, Brent Ozar, and Brad McGehee.

I hope to see you at the PASS Summit in two weeks!

-Kev