What Three Events Brought You Here?

January 26, 2010 by 6 Comments

Whiners and Whingers Get Wedgies There I was, just a couple weeks back, whining that I wasn't getting tagged by friends when a new meme comes out.  Sure enough, when my friend, Paul Randal (blog | twitter), starts a new meme with me as one of the first handful of people tagged, it's taken me a full ten days to get a response out the door.  Yes - I deserve a wedgie. In Paul's initial post, I saw that he'd asked for three events that were pivotal in why I'm where I am today.  To be honest, I've been noodling over my response ever since Paul first tagged me.  So, in a sense, I've been … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Memes, Opinion, PASS, Professional Development, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , , ,

Goals and Theme Word for 2010

January 14, 2010 by 6 Comments

NOT A WHINER I've been really intrigued by a meme making the rounds of the blogsphere concerning goals for the coming year and picking a theme word, rather than the usual New Year's resolution. As with all memes, they start with a blogger picking the topic of discussion (in this case, Tara Hunt at HPC) and was picked up by my friend, Tom LaRock ( blog | twitter) in his blog post, Why I Don't Like Kevin Kline and Never Tag Him in Memes. As in all memes, one blogger starts it off and then others are tagged, spreading the chain outward.  So Tom tagged several other good friends of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Memes, Opinion, Professional Development, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With: , ,

Sequels for SQL: Dec 17, 2009

December 17, 2009 by Leave a Comment

In the Sequels for SQL series, I point you to sites where you can go beyond the nose-to-the-grindstone resources that we see every day as SQL Server professionals.  (My favorite resource for pan-SQL Server pointers is Steve Jone's Database Weekly email newsletter.)  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. SQL Server: We live it.  We love it. When Jimmy May talks, I listen.  Not just because he's a personal … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Administration, Cool Technologies, Gov2.0, Hardware, On-Line Resources, Opinion, Professional Development, Seven Sequels, SQLServerPedia Syndication, Trends Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

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

November 25, 2009 by 3 Comments

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 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 … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Cool Technologies, On-Line Resources, Opinion, Professional Development, Seven Sequels, SQLServerPedia Syndication, Trends Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Starting the Travel Tips Meme

October 25, 2009 by 3 Comments

'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 … [Read more...]

Filed Under: PASS, Professional Development Tagged With: ,

What Direction Do You Choose?

October 21, 2009 by 6 Comments

You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself, any direction you choose. Dr. Seuss Dr Seuss makes a great point.  Only you can determine where you go in life and where those you lead in life (your significant other, your kids, your family, your business associates) will follow.  What happens when you don't have your feet in your shoes?  What if you're not wearing shoes?  Or what if your shoes are sandals?  Which direction do you steer?  Do you head to the beach or to the snowy mountains?  What if you're not only steering yourself, but an entire … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Ethics, Governance, Opinion, PASS, Professional Development, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With:

Upcoming Seminar and SQL Saturday in Florida, Oct 13-17

October 4, 2009 by 1 Comment

Please join me for SQL Saturday #21 coming up on Saturday, October 17th.  There are over 50 sessions on tap with great speakers from the area and across the nation.  Some of the notable speakers include: Andy Leonard (blog here) Andy Warren (blog here) Brian Knight (blog here) Buck Woody (blog here) Chad Miller (blog here) Joe Celco (blog here) Joe Webb (blog here) Jonathan Kehayias (blog here) Kendal Van Dyke (blog here) Ken Simmons (blog here) Not only do we have SQL Saturday coming up, but Andy & company put together five world class seminars the week … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Conferences, PASS, Professional Development, SQLServerPedia Syndication, Transact-SQL Programming Tagged With: , ,

The SQLSaturday Advisory Council

August 17, 2009 by Leave a Comment

It's my pleasure to report that Andy Warren has asked me to participate in the SQL Saturday Advisory Council.  I'm really excited by the fantastic learning opportunities presented by the SQL Saturday system of events that Andy and company have established.  They've taken great pains to set up a system of high-quality events that are free or very low cost to attendees.  In addition, they're leading SQL Saturday altruistically and transparently, as indicated by their blog.  I've spoken at the Atlanta SQL Saturday and hope to speak at more in the future.  In fact, the leadership of my local SQL … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Conferences, Professional Development, SQLServerPedia Syndication Tagged With:

24 Hours of PASS

August 3, 2009 by Leave a Comment

Join me and many other great SQL Server gurus on September 1st for a 24-hour virtual event, 24 Hours of PASS.  I'll be there along with many of the great SQL community speakers (and personal friends) such as Louis Davidson, Kalen Delaney, Steve Jones, Andy Kelly, Brian Knight, Brad McGahee and many more.  Each session is one hour in length with a 45 minute presentation and 15 minutes of live Q&A.  Local PASS Chapters from around the world will be hosting each hourly segment. If you live in middle Tennessee, northern Alabama, or southern central Kentucky, be sure to check out our great … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Conferences, Nashville SQL Server Users Group, On-Line Resources, PASS, Professional Development

More About Successful Directors versus Successful Technologists

August 3, 2009 by 2 Comments

If you're a SQL Server professional who hasn't been to the website of the Professional Association for SQL Server, you're doing yourself a disservice.  Membership is free and, in addition to all of the technical resources that it provides, it connects you to a world of networking opportunities with other like-minded professionals.  I strongly encourage you to register and then go the second step of creating a PASSport profile. Once you're registered, you can get access to many resources such as live and recorded webcasts, SIG events, and much more.  Not to toot my own horn too much, but … [Read more...]

Filed Under: PASS, Professional Development
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