A lot of highly analytical folks I’ve met over the years have not been the best communicators. Heck I was first mentored by a Unix admin. He was not known for the leading you by the hand approach. Ok, that’s not fair. He’d lead you once but you’d better, by cracky, take copious notes and never have to ask about that thing again or suffer The Look.
Anybody with me on that one? Been there?
Ok, first off let me clarify that I’m not doggin’ the guy. Those experiences taught me a lot of resilience. It taught me a lot of real-world self-sufficiency. It wasn’t all bad. In fact, years later, I thanked him for it.
I maintain that one reason he was so highly skilled is because he took great pains to teach us the first time. Sure you had it coming if you didn’t learn quickly but that’s not my point. The training was rigorous and thorough. It was focused and given the proper due attention; never done as an aside.
Partly because of this focus on training and sharing information, I think that made my Unix admin boss a BETTER mentor. It improved HIS skills too.
Because my title is true “You never know what you know until you share it”.
I’m working with a friend of mine who just joined our company. I realized the other day, when sharing some information with the new guy, that I’ve learned SO much about this company and our processes since I’ve been here. However, I’m out of practice in mentoring. So it’s a little rough conveying the information in a reasonable, structured and dedicated-time-fashion like my old Unix admin boss would have done with me.
I need to take some notes out of his man-pages (Unix reference there, couldn’t resist).
So the point I’m making today, if I’m making one at all is this: mentoring folks and sharing information with others is a great way to build your own skills. It truly reinforces what you know. It makes you realize that you’re not just spinning your wheels (cause we all have those days right?).
How do you share that info though? Get two things.
- A whiteboard
- A developer-centric wiki site
Whiteboards are fantastic for having developer chats. When you start talking to other devs about something, whiteboard it as often as possible. Why? It’s a presentation skill. Sure you may feel like you’re just talking to a work-buddy but you are in fact, getting out of your own head and practicing the skill of presentation.
Then if that information needs recorded for future use, you take it to the wiki.
Why is this important?
It gets you organized AND it helps with your documentation skills. It also keeps your internal ram-memory freed up. Too many of us keep too much knowledge crammed in our own heads and never share it.
Run your internal team like Facebook I say. Get it all out there on your *wall* where everyone can communicate, collaborate, teach and share.
Your skill as a developer will grow and your resume will look better for it.
The flip side of this is being “the guy in the room”. The fella .. or fella-ette .. that just *knows stuff* but nobody knows how to talk to them and basically they just sit in their room or cube and turn cranks all day which only they understand. Gosh, what fun huh?
I’ve been that guy.
I’ve also been the guy that the bulk of this article describes. I like being the collaborative, communicative guy better.
What have your experiences been with Collaboration Vs. Being “The Guy in the Room”? Agree with my thoughts above? Comments below are welcomed!
That’s it for now. Get out there and talk. Get out there and MENTOR. And as always, make it a great day!