Anyways, I was a developer at a smaller web development company that was run more through fear and unreasonable expectations than through proper management savvy. This place also had a habit of paying its female employees lower than the males, despite experience and obvious credentials. I don’t want to draw any correlation here, but I’m sure your mind can work something out on its own.

Before we get into the story, I should point out that in work environments, I tend to be fairly outspoken, and chatty. This doesn’t seem to hinder my work or the work of those around me. This is just how i work; I am a surprisingly social creature at my workplace. People tend to know what I think about what I’m working on, situations at work, and most topics that get discussed around me. Its a good working model for me. Sadly this model didn’t work so well with management at my old job.

The Story

So it was annual review time. A week prior to our expected meetings with our manager I, like everyone else, was given a sheet for a self-analysis review. We were to outline our strengths, weaknesses, goals etc. It was all very open-ended. Well, I thought it was, apparently there was a correct way to fill it out, and I had just missed something. There was a section at the end for goals I wanted to achieve; personally, professionally, etc. I had no real problem coming up with some answers for the professional section, but I was reluctant to list any personal goals. I came up with some answers, submitted my paperwork, and continued on working.

A week later my meeting with management arrives. I step into his uniform, unadorned, clinically sterile office. This was a man about efficiency; he didn’t take bullshit, he felt he didn’t deal in it (this is suspect) and was generally quite boring; well boring except for the fact he could dead lift 300 pounds. Seriously, he worked out like Arnold. He was, however as anal as the boss from The Incredibles. That whole scene with him lining up the pencils on his desk calendar?

That’s a real thing.

He sits me down and we stare at each other in silence for roughly a minute; him with a frown, me with what was probably a bored look on my face. I couldn’t help it; this was not something i wanted to be doing considering the timelines they liked to throw at me. Frankly I had more important things to do with my time than what I considered a formality. Had I known what was to come, I’d have been a bit more on my A game.

He opened with the easy compliments, and then went after my behavior (and his distaste for it), and then said “but the real problem i have today is with your goals.”

“My goals?” I responded. “what about my goals?”

“Well Corey, when i set a goal, i give myself a clear timeframe in which to achieve it by. Say I wanted to read a book, I’d set a goal that I will read that book by March 21, 2007. Your goals,” he says as he motions to my self-analysis paper, “are too vague. You’ll never really achieve them with goals like that. You didn’t even write that many down. You can’t tell me you don’t have goals.”

I tried to hide a smile. My reasoning for vague goals is that I had absolutely no intention of sharing any of my legitimate goals, work, personal, or other to them. I didn’t like working there, and i didn’t like how it was run, and to be honest i didn’t really like them. So yes, my goals were vague and not really defined, which was by design. Apparently my manager took notice of this, and than took the completely wrong impression from it.

Now, not noticing my smirk or utterly unfazed by it, he went on: “we really want you to get some more focus Corey, so here’s what were going to do: we’re going to split your raise for now. You’ll get half now, and we’ll have another chat in a little while and see about that second half.”

Yes, apparently the best way to motivate me into having better goals was to punish my financially.

“Uh, okay.” I responded, not because I was offended (though I should have been), but because their tactic honestly confused me. Did they honestly think this was going to make me more motivated? Apparently so, but they wanted to give me that extra push: ”Something else i want you to do Corey… There’s a movie id like you to watch. Its all about setting goals and keeping focused, despite what comes your way. That’s something else you need to work on: focus.”

As an aside, let it be known that by this point my projects where the only ones that managed to hit any sort of timelines, and I had worked 50 hour work days to make sure i hit those deadlines. Lack of focus my left gingery testicle.

At this point I was honestly trying not to laugh. A movie. Seriously? You’ve just robbed me of half my wage increase, and now you want me to go watch a movie?

“It’s called Rudy. Its a fantastic film, I really think you’ll get a lot out of it. Have you seen it before?” he said, smiling at me in what I assume was his best fatherly smile.

“Nope” said I, still totally blind-sided by the situation, “can’t say that I have.”

“You go home and watch it tonight, then come talk to me tomorrow. I really think you’ll learn a lot.”

“Y..yeah, sure” I muttered. I sat there for a moment longer, before the awkwardness of the moment hit the ’14 year old male doing a presentation in front of his class for sex ed.’ level of uncomfortableness.

I went back to my desk and sat down, and explained to my neighbor (one of the female employees who had similar opinions to my own about the company) and explained what had just gone down in our managers office.. She laughed when I mentioned the video, but refused to tell me what I was in for.

I know why now, and my revenge on her will be devastating.

Before we get to the review…

I am sure a great many number of people love Rudy. It really is a soul-stirrer. Underprivileged guy makes his way into school despite all odds, studies hard, makes it onto the team, and in the end he finally get to achieve his life-long dream of playing for … Whatever the hell football team he adored. I obviously paid close attention.

My problem was probably the fact that I went in watching this movie, I was cynical due to the context in which I was told to watch it; that is, I only got half my raise because of vague goals and an apparent lack of focus. You are going to have to forgive me a bit for my inability to appreciate what may very well be a decent movie. I don’t think any suggested movie can really be appreciated in a similar situation.

Anyways, lets see what I took from Rudy, given the context.

My curt, somewhat biased review of the movie ‘Rudy’

A slow, small, un-athletic teenager from a lower middle class family has a dream of playing for a college football team. He makes sure everyone knows about this dream, and refuses to listen to their pointing out the obvious; namely that he is slow, short, and poor. He starts working at the steel mill with his father, where he continues to tell everyone about his goal in life. Everyone laughs. Rudy is resentful and becomes more determined to prove them wrong.

Rudy heads off to the college and weasels his way into campus life by begging a preacher to sponsor him and then living off of the charity of the groundskeeper. I will give him credit: he is resourceful. He basically lives in the shed in the football stadium.

Fast forward through a montage of Rudy studying hard, applying for the main school and getting rejected every semesters’ end until we have Rudy’s first big (and obvious) break: he gets into the big school. He does, of course continue to study hard, because hell, why not.

So now that Rudy has made it to college, he starts begging to get onto the team. He is obviously denied. It takes more than grades to get onto the team. You need things like skill, strength, and to be roughly 7 inches taller. No matter, obvious job requirements matter not to Rudy. He keeps pestering until he gets onto the maintenance crew for the team and starts befriending the team members. After months of this, he manages to get onto the reserve team. Once again this is due the charity of those in better positions.

Game season starts, and of course he is begging to get onto the team. He’s got moxy! Once again the coach points out that he is too small, slow, and unskilled to ever make it onto the team. Moxy or not, he’s just not a decent fit into a line-up of skilled players. He is almost literally the short, fat kid in the red rover line.

Que another montage. This one involves loads of training, more befriending, and i think there is some sort of half-baked romance in there too. I’m pretty sure his training revolves around a tackle or some such thing. My memory in this is mercifully vague.

About 40 minutes of sappy, endearing crap happens now. It’s just one long ‘everyone against Rudy’s dream’ train, and you are stuck watching it crash and burn. I think he gets to kiss a girl, and there was probably a bar fight. I know that at some point in here, he ends up being super-friends with the main football lineup.

Game day; literally the climax of the film.

It’s the last game of the season.

Rudy hasn’t managed to get onto the main team yet. He is crushed. Luckily, all of the guys on the team love Rudy so damned much by this point in the film, that they threaten to turn in their jerseys to the coach if he doesn’t put Rudy on the team. Once again the coach says no, calling their bluff because Rudy is too small, slow, and unskilled to be an effective team member. Never mind that he montaged his way to probably successful tackle or whatever.

The team follows through, and start to hand over their jerseys until the coach caves and puts Rudy on the team. Success for our poor little beta male! Note that this is the third major example of depending on others to get him where he needs to be. Other than being lovable and studying like a med student on meth, Rudy hasn’t really done that much.

Rudy has made it onto the field, but the coach hasn’t played him; nothing but bench for poor, small Rudy. That is until the team starts chanting “Rudy” or something, and the crowd picks up on this and runs with it. This is supposed to be the emotional build-up that make grown men suddenly have something in their eye. The sap-o-metre is dialed up to 11 for the end of this movie.

There are 4 seconds (I could be wrong here, but I am pretty sure there were less than 10 seconds left) left on the clock. The final play. Team Rudy is up 7-24 (once again this is a guess but there was at lest a 2 down difference). The coach cracks under the pressure of the crowd and puts Rudy in. The coach is a bit of a bitch for peer pressure.

The whistle blows, and rudy performs his singular tackle, enabling him to fulfill his life-long dream at the age of 23 or so, and be carried off the field by his team mates. Fade to black. or Sepia… or… something.

What I learned from being forced to watch ‘Rudy’

By the end of the movie, I was angry. I was also bored, but mostly I was angry. Here’s what I took away from that movie was this:

• It doesn’t matter whether you can or can’t do the job; work hard and suck up and you can make it on the kindness of others.
• Your life-long goal is actually very short0sighted, and after you achieve it, you wont have anything to look forward to. You peaked at 23. Also, your life goal is kind of weak.
• Nothing you contribute to the team actually matters, nor will it actually make a difference or change the outcome of anything you are involved in.
• You are stupid.

So what my manager was telling me (in my eyes) was that I was stupid, got by on the sympathies and kindnesses of others, that nothing I do actually matters, nor do I contribute anything to the team other than some sort of mascot status. Oh, and my goals are shallow and unimportant. I don’t even know if focus was really brought up in the film.

I made sure to tell my manager this the next day. I did make sure to outline that i knew what he expected me to take from it, but I wanted him to know that he should be very careful about what he suggests people to watch. He didn’t seem too pleased with the fact that I basically shat all over his most favouritist movie. I did however manage to leave him utterly speechless.

What happened after this second chat really is a testament to a lack of employee understanding, and what happens when you use 1950s management styles in the new world. That is, a style of management that induces a fear of losing your job if you don’t work harder, as opposed to a method where support your employees.

The day I told my manager my about my take on Rudy was also the day I had signed the jobs death certificate in my head. I stopped talking to people, I stopped being a social person, and worst of all I stopped caring. My work became sloppier and I just didn’t care. Why should I? They already explained that I wasn’t that important, held back half of my raise, and didn’t like how I worked anyways. Oh, and apparently lacked focus, despite evidence to the contrary.

They saw my new, depressingly altered work style and actually attributed it to me focusing more on my work. It was actually quite the opposite; I didn’t care, but they couldn’t tell because they never actually bothered to talk to me about anything.

The end result

Watching Rudy (and the attitude shift that happened after) did drive me to make a rather specific goal: I applied to college for Graphic Design. Right in the height of my “fuck this place I am leaving and I don’t care” phase, they gave me the rest of my raise because I seemed to have a lot more focus. That night, I went home and applied for graphic design school.

That gave me a rather solid deadline in which to achieve a couple more specific goals; pay off my new car, save up as much as possible for school (made easier by the rest of my raise), and quit the job that had robbed me in more ways than my raise.

I guess they were right about the focus, but wrong about the subject.

The lesson?

There are many lessons to take away from here: Don’t make people watch Rudy, don’t withhold raises for terrible reasons; don’t make your life goal to play for a college football team; don’t be afraid to quit your horrible, horrible job; the list goes on and on.

The most important one is actually for the manager: don’t run your shop through fear and doublespeak. Instead of punishing someone for not fitting into your mould, see what they are contributing, and find a way to augment that to the benefit of the company.

Also, don’t be a dick.

P.S. If you’re wondering why this is called Rudy 2, I can field that one. There was at one point a one line blog post on this website that stated ‘Rudy, rudy, rudy, rudaayyyy.’ That’s it. The reason was that I was still working at my former job and feared they’d find my actual thoughts on the subject and sodomize me. It was also a hat tip to the then popular song ‘Ruby’ by the Kaiser Chiefs. Some time down’ the road, I deleted this post due to its utter irrelevance.

That’s not kosher.

The irony is that if I had just managed to keep up with my weekly posting, I would probably have a more complete list of things that I have actually done. It’s a self-defeating cycle of suck, and I seem to really enjoy the ride. Never mind that I ride it in a busted up canoe, or that the ride takes me through a course that would make most white-water rafting professionals crap themselves just a little. I do it for the thrill.

Alright that may have sounded a tad insane, but I was on a roll and went with it.

So as stated it’s been a good 5 months since my last post, and I’ve got no good explanation for the break in content. I did just get back into school and I did start applying myself more for freelance stuff, but that’s hardly an excuse. Regardless, I’m back on the horse for now, and I’m feeling if not inspired, than at least motivated. To kick things off, I’ll give a quick rundown of everything that’s been going on with me recently.

I swear I’m not that self-involved. No, really I’m not. I am not a self-centered arrogant prat! Good god, you kiss your mother with that mouth? That’s sick man. Sick.

Personal Development

Python/Django

I am very slowly getting my head around Django. Thankfully I have my good friend and partner in crime, Bartek Ciszkowski to point out the many things I am doing wrong. I’ll actually have my first self-initiated site going up soon that has been built as both an excuse to get Python/Django experience, and because the site concept is near to my heart. I’ll make sure to post a grand opening post talking about it’s many virtues when it’s up.

Hopefully that’ll be sometime this week.

Shopify

I’ve recently been given the opportunity to work on a freelance project involving the creation of a Shopify theme. Now I’d only ever heard of Shopify through the placement ads on the Boagworld Podcasts (if you are a web person, their podcast is a must-listen). I’ve started playing with the system they have in play – very closely related to the templating system used in Django – and I have to say I’m in love.

The templating is easy, it’s fast, it works, and they even provide an offline environment in which to develop locally called Vision. Honestly these guys have done a bang-up job of making it as easy as humanly possible to create sexy store themes.

I will be doing some more work with Shopify to be sure.

Reading

I’ve been on fire recently with reading. I admit I’m not reading books 1 a day as some people I could point towards to, but I’ve been really getting into Graphic Design literature. I’m not talking about online writings – though I do follow those as well –  I’m talking about honest to goodness books. I will be writing reviews for the ones I’ve got through already, but to keep up with what I’m reading you can have a look at my Goodreads profile. You may notice a slight theme regarding social change through design in many of the design books I have read (and continue to read), which is something I feel strongly about.

I’ll probably end up writing a rather long-winded post/rant on just that topic alone.

Work stuff

GraphicRiver

I’ve dipped my foot into the could-be-lucrative-if-you-stick-to-it market of stock imagery. If you are interested in any of my texture packs, than I ask that you click this shameless advertising link and support me. I’ll actually be starting on creating some Shopify themes soon (they have a section for that), as that’s an area I’ve recently been introduced to and am in love with. I’m not expecting this to really pay any bills, but I like the idea of passive income.

Who knows, maybe one day it’ll pay for a trip. Maybe a domestic flight.

Freelance

I’ve recently been working on a couple of freelance items that should be making their way to the internet soon. I’ll hold off on actually listing them in this post, but I’m happy to say that I’m getting some more web work. If anyone is interested in throwing more my way, you can of course contact me by email or using my contact page.

Either way, my portfolio page is going to start growing; something I’ve been trying to do for a while.

Everything else

School

I’m almost done, a fact that I am proud to say. I’m chomping at the bit to get out of school and really get into the field. This being my second time through school, my attitude is very different than that of the 18 year old me. With being in my last semester, I can happily say that I’ve maintained an average that would cause younger me’s brain to ooze out of his head. This is of course only because I’ve busted my ass (another thing young me wouldn’t think possible) to get those grades.

As it works out, those who say “you only get out of it what you put in” are wiser than I thought.

Peer-tutoring and Office work continue to present me with new opportunities to scratch my chin in a ponderous but mind-blown manner. From students managing to remove their dashboard, to learning how to apply vinyl signage to interesting projects for the Ontario Government, my jobs never cease to educate me.

360

With Theresa off in England and not in England, I find myself with a lot more time on my hands. Though I have filled much of that time trying to grow my portfolio to that of “reasonable” – as if there is such a thing – as well as reading, I’ve actually found myself playing my XBox 360 a lot more. Most of my time recently has been split between Borderlands and Ticket to Ride.

Both are good, solid games, though my appreciation for Borderlands shocked even me. I wasn’t too keen on the game when it first came out, and it took repeated playings to really get. Now I’m on my second playthrough in solo mode, and I’m actually rather enjoying it. Maybe it’s just the challenge of everything wanting to murder you that spurns me on. Ticket to Ride is just good wholesome fun.

Life-changing stuff

So this one’s a little different. When I graduate, I’ll be flying over to England where, as previously stated, where my girlfriend is currently teaching children to not be destructive whirlwinds. It’s a bit of a chance for me, but I’m really looking forward to it all. The hardest part is trying to land a job or some interviews with places in the Greater London area. Those guys are good.

Regardless I’m contacting some, so we’ll see how well that goes.

Alright, so there you go; a very brief overview of what’s going on. I’ll have a bunch of events as blog fodder in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.

In my case this revolves around:

• My portfolio
• Posts with real content
• Reading books
• Spending time with Theresa while she is down from that god-forsaken place North Bay.
• Aimlessly trying to catch up on my games

Now since only a couple of those are actually proactive (I’ll leave you to decide which) I have to pick and choose what and when I do these things. What is the result? Well to give you a glimpse, it’s almost 2 AM as of the start of this post. This is after I applied to many, many bursaries through my school. Who knew that working two jobs wouldn’t be enough to actually stay out of debt? Guess I’ll have to get some more!

My financial woes are not what I plan to talk about today though. I plan to talk about what I can take away from my first semester.

Okay, technically this would be my seventh semester if you are counting the six from the last time I was in school. That is also part of this so read on!

1. Being lazy sucks

This may come as a shock to some of you, but I was not always a star pupil. Oh no, in fact I used to revel in my ability to half-ass almost any project and end up with a 65-70 (that’s a C to a B- to the rest of the world) on any given assignment or project. If I didn’t like the course, I would try even less and be happy with a 55-58 (D to D+). My parents browbeat me, my teachers clucked their tongues and shook their heads, but I just breezed though my University-level (that’s Canadian fancy-talk for advanced) courses. By doing the University-level courses and applying to College, my average was bumped up considerably, and I got into College.

So you would think that since my parents were paying, and I had just managed to squeak by, that I would learn the error of my ways, straighten-up and fly right.

You would think wrong, of course.

By the end of my college stint, with the exception of a couple of classes (Web Development 1,2 and 3 pretty much) I was still hovering around that 70. The only thing that landed me the job that I got was through determination, charisma, and steaming piles of luck.

This kind of thing only works so well and for so long.

Working this job changed a lot of things. First, I learned how to stay up for long periods of time. Second, I learned to hate take-out food (don’t worry I’m getting better now). Third, it beat the lazy out of me with the Crowbar of Client Dead-lines. I learned that being lazy when people are paying you is a very good way to get your ass fired. I wasn’t fired, but believe me that there was no alternative to hard work. In many ways I am thankful for this.

When the opportunity came along for me to go back to school for something that interests me way more than keyboard-jockeying, I took it. With that decision came many things in quick succession:

1. Getting a second job
2. Saving like a bastard
3. Tuition, books, and other school bills
4. Losing my full-time, nicely-waged job
5. Homework
6. More goddamned bills
7. Tests, presentations, and apparently a video

If this had happened the first time I went through school, I probably would have killed myself, my family, or everyone I know in a murderous rage by now. Thankfully, through my on-the-job experience, I had learned how to organize my work, get it done, and still manage to find time to sleep.

I’d like to point out that because if this skill, I have managed to work two jobs while maintaining an average of 90% + overall so far. I don’t know how to explain this any better than I already have: being lazy sucks. If you have issues with being lazy, procrastinating, or otherwise messing-about, believe me that you have to work constantly against those urges. I have to all the time, but in the end you only screw yourself if you get lazy.

2. Keep your stuff safe

Dropbox. I love Dropbox. I could sing praises for this system for hours. Well okay, probably more like 15 minutes max, but that’s not the point here. Dropbox allows you to synchronize files within a certain directory (the Dropbox folder, shockingly) to their web servers. What does this mean? It means that everything in that folder can be accessed through their online web interface. and what does that mean? It means that if your are ever separated from your computer, your computer explodes, or anything in between you can still get to the files stored on their servers. You can also hook multiple computers into the same account, and it will sync the files between them as well. This allows you to share files between computers that may not be anywhere near the same network.

I’m not trying to sell you anything (it’s actually a free for the basic level), but it does assist in my point. Keeping your stuff safe is as important when it comes to school as it does ot your home. Thankfully, I didn’t have any horrible experiences with exploding computers or file separation, but it was still a good practice. By using this system, I safeguard myself against very bad situations. Colleges and Universities really don’t care all that much of your personal plights. In fact many teachers I’ve had I’ve overheard them say “well that sucks, too bad.”

You can’t stop every bad thing from happening, but you can take preventative measures.

3. Organization actually works.

I hate organizers. I still do! With their paper and their spiral binding, bah! Thankfully, I found alternatives that work. As it happens, I use Thunderbird. The nice thing about Thunderbird, much like Firefox, is the ability to use add-ons. Lightning (an add-on version of Sunbird) and a Provider for Google Calendars have allowed me to get my shit together without the use of those silly paper-based organizers.

Please note that I have met many people who prefer the paper-based organizers: I was basically born with a mouse in my hand, so I’m inclined to use technology whenever possible. It’s a failing I live with.

In any case, Lightning allows you to have a calendar built into Thunderbird. It also provides an interface to create tasks as well, though I don’t use those. The Google Calendar plugin allows you to use Lightning with Google Calendars. This means that much like the Dropbox argument, you can still access your calendars if your computer explodes. I have made a personal, work, homework/assignment, and school schedule calendars. For the first time, I actually know what things are due when, and how to schedule my time around work and other things. It’s silly to think that it took me this long to figure out that organizing things actually helps get things done faster.

If you don’t use Thunderbird, Google Calendars, or computers in general, you can still work to get yourself organized. I can honestly say that once I introduced the organizer strategy,

4.Go that extra mile

I spent five hours working  on a typography exercise that involved me making an apple. Five hours of tweezers, 12 point font, and rubber cement. Sounds insane, doesn’t it? Well, it probably does but it also shows a determination to really put out something that is more than “alright.”

This one comes with at least some backup facts. I’ve only got three of my marks back (out of six), but everything has been above a 90. I’ve been known to spend hours and hours on things that others have put together in one or two. Does that mean I’m overdoing it? Very probably, I have no illusions that I may be going well beyond the call of duty here. That is also my point though: Spending that extra time can (in most cases) result in a more polished product.

This is something I’ve learned over time. Back when I was lazy, I was the master of doing everything last-minute. This wasn’t a lack of organization or anything, I chose to do everything at the last minute because part of me felt that I operated best under the pressure. As it turns out, I do alright under pressure and there is nothing wrong with that. But I do amazingly well, as it turns out, when I have the extra time to self-critique, improve, revise, and even experiment.

Is there anything wrong with only spending two hours on something and getting a 75% (B) on what you did? Not at all, if what you’re looking for is a 75%. Since that’s no where near what I want out of the education I am paying for (and it’s not cheap, though I’m sure there are some angry University students that would love to talk to me), I have to put in the extra time myself. I want to be the best I can, and school only gives you the tools in which to do that; it’s up to you to use them to the best of your ability.

5. Don’t be a Dick

Note: I am so sorry for the amount of times ‘dick’ comes up in this section. This is going to play havoc with my SEO.

This sounds simple, but it’s actually harder than one would think. The issue is that it goes two ways, and it’s easy to act like a dick when you don’t even realize:

Being the Dick

This is pretty simple. If you act like a dick, you are being the dick. Acting like a dick can be, but is not limited to the following:

• Boasting about any/everything you do.
• Trying to out-boast anyone else (they may be dicks, but you’re a bigger one).
• Rubbing marks in peoples face.
• Saying how awesome you are at something, and then criticizing the teacher (publicly).
• Being snooty, arrogant, or otherwise acting “better” than others.
• Making fun of people (grow the fuck up kthnx).
• Picking fights, either physical or mental.

When you do things like this, it may make you feel better. It may make you feel confident and self-assured. It will make everyone around you loathe whenever you open your word hole. Friends that you have will come to resent you, and you will end up with fewer contacts coming out of school, and less leway with people when it’s needed.

Returning the Dickness

This is the one people don’t realize. you may think that “an eye for an eye” is a good mandate to follow, but when other people want to start gouging your eyes out, there’s an issue. Here are easy ways to return the dickness without realizing it:

• Trying to shut up a dick by attacking their person, ability, etc.
• Trying to out boast someone to shut them up/put them in their place (once again, you are the bigger dick).
• Faux modesty (you’re not fooling anyone).
• Following suit with a dick (joining in with mocking, criticizing etc.).
• Being a dick to a dick because their a dick.

Some of those are fairly obvious, but a couple are less obvious.

Trying to act modest just annoys people. You’re really not fooling anyone. When someone gives you a compliment, take it, and return something in kind. Don’t elaborate on your greatness, nor say that you suck and don’t know how you got the mark you did. That will make them feel even worse, they’ll think you’re a liar, and you may even start to believe it yourself. Undermining your own self-confidence doesn’t help anyone.

When being a dick towards a dick, you may think you are giving them a taste (heh) of their own medicine. You may know what you’re doing, but those around you may not perceive it the same way; they may just see two dicks trying to out-dick one another. On top of that, the dick you are being a dick to may not even realize you are being a dick towards them. The result of this is that you look like a dick, but got none of the supposed revenge.

Not being the Dick

This should be fairly apparent, but for the sake of completeness, I will include a list for this anyways. I’m always a fan of things being full-circle. Anyways, how to not be a dick:

• Be helpful. When people ask for help, help them if you can.
• Give constructive criticism. “That sucks” isn’t doing anyone any good. “You could try doing this for this reason” will glean a much better reception.
• Be kind. Don’t rip on people when something isn’t good. You can be kind with constructive criticism as much as you can with compliments.
• Accept compliments, and return in kind.
• Don’t single people out to rip on them. It doesn’t help anyone.
• Be courteous. There’s nothing wrong with “please” and “thank you”.

Generally to avoid being a dick, you have to be a generally good and nice person. I’m not saying I exhibit all of these traits (far from, really); what I’m saying is that you should try to exhibit as many as you can. It’s a process of continuous improvement.

6. Do your work

This doesn’t even need a large section, and by all accounts it shouldn’t really have to be on here. Make time to do your work, and for crap sake, do your work. I can’t tell you how many people I know in my section that lost marks simply because they didn’t do assignment. Generally speaking, you cannot lose marks for trying. If you don’t hand something in, you get a zero. If you hand in crap, you can get a one. One is infinitely better than zero (quiet, math nerds), and handing assignments in can only help your cause.

It is this point that probably caused most of my lost marks. Many assignments in my last stint in College went completely undone; ignored for the sake of ignoring them. I can’t honestly say that I even had better things to do because I was just lazy back then. Teachers even told me that if I just handed something in, it would help my marks, but I scoffed at their wisdom, and ended up (in some cases) with a 58%. I have no defense for it, and now I understand what they were saying.

7. Figure out how to study

This one was probably the hardest for me, and of course it is also the point that gave me the most. It was by a freak accident that I found out how to study effectively. I was in the school lounge one day when someone asked me if I had studied for the test. “What test?” I responded (this is before the organizer thing). I then had two hours to learn 1/3rd of my textbook. It may sound insane, but I figured out a process of reading and constant quizzing is actually how I learned best. I’ve refined it a bit since then, and it now involves me writing the points down, highlighting them, force memorizing them, and having people quiz me on things in random order. By the end of the session I will have forgotten my name, my address, and how to drive, but God damn do I know the course material.

I never used to be this way. I used to depend entirely on my ability to recall from memory. As it turns out that works, but it’s not 100% for me. By combining my passive ability with active studying, I can make sure I know what I need to.

I’m not saying that this will work for you. Hell, some people would look at my method and crap themselves. Others would look at this (my girlfriend comes to mind) and say that it’s not nearly enough. I’m not here to sell my method, though if it works for you go nuts, I’m simply saying that studying is worth it in the end.  Find the best way for you to study, and go for it. It might take a couple takes to get it right, but there’s a way for everyone.

8. Take time to relax

At first glance, you would think that this point would directly contrast others that I have made. You would be wrong, but I can totally understand how you would do that. Let me explain:

Taking time for yourself is not being lazy, it is not skipping out on work, and it is not aiming for the average. It can be if your relaxation time is way too large, and causes those points to happen. It all comes down to balance with relaxation time. All work and no play make jack a dull boy. It’s very true, you know. When you don’t take time for yourself, you will eventually become frustrated, irritable, and probably end up shooting the mailman.

Taking time to relax and recharge has benefits that I don’t need to voice. I’m sure a brief search on the Internet will tell you more than I ever could. It makes you feel better, which will help you work better. It also takes your mind off of things, which can result in you having a flash of brilliance on a problem you were having. I’ve always found that taking an hour for a bath and a book (shut up, I don’t need to hear what a wuss I sound like) leaves me feeling way better.

I’m sure I’m missing many points that I could probably rig up, but after 3000 words, I’m running out of brain and witty banter. I hope that my points on my education can help, maybe even educate, some others. If you have your own points to add, feel free to comment with them.

I thought at first about writing about Poverty all over the world. Then I thought about writing about Poverty in your own country. That’s when I realized I could talk about my own country, because damn it, I live here and this shit’s important. This is probably one of the issues closest to my heart on this planet and I’ll be damned to give up an opportunity to help.

I am against Poverty.

For the grammar and spelling Nazis out there, you will notice that I’m giving Poverty a capital ‘P’. My reasoning for this is simple: Poverty is not just a state; it’s not just something that happens to people. Poverty is a being. It’s a horrible, twisted thing that exists everywhere you go. Wherever you find people, you will find Poverty near by.

Poverty is life going wrong.

Poverty is mistakes.

Poverty is screwing up, hard luck, a missed bill, an empty stomach, a bitter cold night, an addiction you can’t shake,  a child without a home, a man with enough dignity that he will actually beg for help, a squeegee kid, an over-crowded shelter, a woman riding the bus until it closes, a person drowning their sorrows, an under-paid worker, a child labourer, a person who needs help.

Poverty is a disease.

Poverty is a mistake.

Poverty is a thing, and we have to stare at it right in the eye, and bludgeon it to death with a baseball bat.

Poverty in Canada

Canada is considered to be a first-world country, and is a part of the G8. We are recognized in the world as a great country; a land of opportunities and free thought. A place where people can make their lives better.

Then why is it that even in Canada, a place that I am proud to call my home, we have such high rates of poverty? In 2000 Canada’s Poverty rate rested somewhere about 16%. Given the population was just shy of 30 million, that adds up to roughly 4.7 million people resting below the Poverty line. Some reports conflict saying that it was actually only around 11-12%. Going with those numbers, we’ve still got 3.3 – 3.6 million people below the poverty line.

Those same reports also say that as of 2005, the poverty rate is resting around 11 %. I feel it’s pretty safe to say that though a couple years have passed, I doubt that number has fluctuated that much. So we have 3.3 million people that live below the Poverty line.

What the hell?

This isn’t right. In a country as great as it is – sorry world, I’m a touch patriotic – how is it that literally 1/10th of the population – 1.2 million of which are children – are living below the poverty line? I’m aware that Canada does not officially have a set poverty line, but a yearly calculated value. Even with that fact in mind, how can things be as bad as they are?

What can we do?

Well if you want to feel good, throw some money into some hats, cups, bowls, or whatever the poor on the street use to beg. That will give you a warm feeling in your stomach as you walk on down the street to buy food that costs too much and clothing that you’re over-charged for.

If you want to make a real difference, try spending your money and your time helping organizations that are working on improving the quality of life both locally and globally.

Here’s a very small list of national and international charities that you can work with and donate to. If you don’t like the one’s I’ve listed, find another one and get started.

Make Poverty History

“Make Poverty History has mobilized Canadians like never before on issues related to poverty at home and abroad. From hundreds of events to hundreds of thousands of e-mail messages to politicians, from getting organized in communities to meeting with decision-makers, Canadian Make Poverty History campaigners are standing up and making a difference.”

Website: http://www.makepovertyhistory.ca

Free The Children

“Free The Children is the world’s largest network of children helping children through education, with more than one million youth involved in our innovative education and development programs in 45 countries. Founded in 1995 by international child rights activist Craig Kielburger, Free The Children has a proven track record of success. The organization has received the World’s Children’s Prize for the Rights of the Child (also known as the Children’s Nobel Prize), the Human Rights Award from the World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations, and has formed successful partnerships with leading school boards and Oprah’s Angel Network.”

Website: http://www.freethechildren.com

Meal Exchange

“Meal Exchange is a national student-founded, youth-driven, registered charity organized to address local hunger by mobilizing the talent and passion of students. Since 1993, our programmes have been run on over 50 campuses across Canada and generated over $2 million dollars worth of food or 727,200 meals to address local hunger.”

Website: http://www.mealexchange.com

National Anti-Poverty Organization

“The mission of the National Anti-Poverty Organization (NAPO) is to eradicate poverty in Canada by promoting income and social security for all Canadians, and by promoting poverty eradication as a human rights obligation.

We believe that poverty is a violation of the human right to security of the person and, with reference to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the legal right to security of the person. We further believe that poverty is an affront to the values of fairness, justice and the inclusion of all persons in Canadian society. We therefore contend that for these reasons, poverty must be eradicated.”

Website: http://www.napo-onap.ca/

The Hunger Site

“The Hunger Site was founded to focus the power of the Internet on a specific humanitarian need; the eradication of world hunger. Since its launch in June 1999, the site has established itself as a leader in online activism, helping to feed the world’s hungry and food insecure.”

Website: http://www.thehungersite.com

United Way Canada

“The Movement is made up of 120 volunteer-based United Ways – Centraides (UWs-Cs) located in ten provinces and two territories and a national organization, United Way of Canada – Centraide Canada. Its mission is “to improve lives and build community by engaging individuals and mobilizing collective action”.”

Website: http://www.unitedway.ca

World Job and Food Bank

“The primary goal of WJFB is to help the poor in less developed countries to become able to help themselves. By creating income-generating small work cooperatives, WJFB helps to provide jobs and skills training for the poorest. These co-operatives have been in the form of poultry rearing, sewing and dress making, desktop publishing, and others.  Co-op members work together to develop and market their product, and share in the profits. Once fully trained, they can obtain jobs elsewhere, so that more needy people can join the co-op and learn skills.”

Website: http://www.wjfb.org/

Save the Children

“Save the Children Canada has been working for over 85 years to bring immediate and lasting improvements to the lives of children through the realization of their rights. Save the Children Canada provides both long-term development assistance and emergency relief. Wherever possible we work closely with local community organizations to ensure lasting and effective programs to benefit children and their families.  We partner with local organizations, communities, government bodies and international organizations.”

Website: http://www.savethechildren.ca

End Canadian Poverty

“End Canadian Poverty (ECP) aims to provide information about charities and organizations that help Canadians cope with and overcome poverty. We hope that summarizing this information will help you to locate food banks, housing support and more if you are in need of these services. Or, if you would like to help impoverished Canadians, through donations of time or money, we hope that ECP will help you to find information about a charity or organization that is right for you.”

Website: http://www.endcanadianpoverty.ca

In the end

It’s up to us people. Poverty won’t get rid of itself and only we as people, we as a nation, we as a world can change things. I’m exceptionally thankful to be in the financial and economical position that I am, and I’m damned lucky to be here. What’s my excuse for not helping out? I don’t have one, and I’d be hard pressed to find anyone that did have a passable reason.

Get out there and let’s destroy Poverty.

As I’ve voiced my opinion over and over (and over), applied my own twist to things, and finally catching the ear of the designer at my current job, I’ve finally got my foot in the door for doing some graphic design work. Together, the designer and I were really going to blow away the old designs with a fresh look, new design rules to apply, and a good application of experience.

I was going to finally get my chance to do what I’ve been asking to do for almost two years! So why did I give it up?

The Paper

First and foremost, unless you’re a prodigy of design, the messiah of the layout, and the master of typography, people aren’t going to pay much attention to your opinion unless you’ve got some documentation backing you. It’s the sad truth, and it’s one of the driving forces behind my decision. You can be as good as you possibly can, but without that little “G.D” title under your list of can-dos, you have to work that much harder just to prove that your the designer for the job.

Once I complete my stint at Mohawk College, I’ll probably upgrade via a distance course so that I can work in the field and gain experience while upgrading my educational status. That part’s going to suck socially, economically, physically, and mentally but I’ll manage. I just remind myself that perpetual learning is the most important thing in life you can do for yourself and your community.

The Experience

I want to learn about design in a structured environment. I know I’ve been reading like a fiend since I started on this road, but reading books only gets you so far without proper application of knowledge. I’m hoping and somewhat expecting to get this foundation from school. I don’t want to be just another designer; I want to be a bloody-good designer. I want people to look at my work and say something akin to “Fuck. Yes.”

I know I won’t be able to do that without a strong foundation and understanding of the rules of design. School can help me with this.

The Direction

My work’s been rewarding. Sure I’ve worked 40 hour-per-day shifts, been sat behind the eight ball more times than I’m willing to count, and I’m sure I’ve lost hair from the whole ordeal. I’ve also been taught some rather good habits about how to work under pressure, know just what my abilities are and how to push them, and I know just how much I enjoy my work.

Having said that, being a code-jockey for the rest of my life is not what I have planned. I enjoy coding, and I like it being a part of what I do. I do not want it to be the main focus of my work because over the last two years I’ve come to the conclusion that I like design work more. It appeals to me, and I appeal to it. I would be short-changing myself if I waited too long before getting my formal education in the field.

As it turns out, my place of employment have actually offered me a part time job where I set my hours weekly. If I can’t work, it’s no big deal. They’re also willing to pay me my current rate of pay in an hourly format. That’s.. roughly 30 dollars an hour in a part time job. I admit that it’s tempting, and I’ve got to give that some thought.

The Drive

I want to do this. I want to become a designer and there’s nothing anyone can really say to dissuade me. I know becoming a designer will require a pay cut, at least at the beginning. I know that it’s a flooded field at the moment since everyone and their mother thinks that they can design. I know that it’ll be hard for me to stand out, but I will.

I will do this.

I will complete my schooling.

I will distinguish myself.

I will be a designer.

I will be proud of my work.

• Read Everything
• Grains of Salt are Heavy. And Salty.
• Hear Typeface, and Read Audiocasts
• Keeping an Open Mind is the Key to [insert something prophetic here]
• My personal Stash

Read Everything

This has been my life for the last several months. I’ve read more design articles then I can honestly count at this point, and I’ve only just begun. I’ve started subscribing to Podcasts so that while I’m at work I can listen to them. Yes, I can listen to Podcasts and work because I’m just that good (not actually that good). My Google Reader is growing, my participation in social networks is slowly expanding, I’m starting to look beyond what’s cool to try and understand the why behind it. This is progress, and this is what I want to share today.

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Grains of Salt are Heavy. And Salty.

In part one I talked about reading everything with an open mind and with an understanding that the authors of the articles you’ll read probably know more than you. After five months I still feel that way, and I’m glad for it. It proves that I know nothing in comparison to those living and breathing the field. Does that mean I’m stupid? No, at least I don’t think so. What it means is that there are people out there better than me, simple as that. It’s only a bad thing if you turn your nose up at them and decide not to learn from them.

A trend I have noticed amongst the Web, which is one I’ve noticed starting to bleed into real life, is the idea of collaboration; sharing information, tips, helpful tidbits, resources, etc. Instead of clinging to intellectual property and waving a searing iron of distrust at others, people are actually sharing their ideas. Though many business people will cringe at the idea, that’s the way things are headed and there’s nothing to be done about it. What does that mean for those deciding to learn? You are now being presented with a plethora of free information that is actually useful. To ignore this information (willingly or unwittingly) is an outright sin.

The problem with this flood of information is the fact that anyone and everyone (myself included) is writing it! All information is suspect at this point. Unless what you’re reading is coming from a known expert, you can never be sure if the article you are reading is legit. This is where the grain(s) of salt comes in. I implore you to read as much as you can about as many facets of design as possible, because information is power. I also implore you to take everything with a grain of salt. If you find something suspect or interesting: look it up, and find more on the subject. You can clear things up pretty quickly with one or two Google searches.

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Hear Typeface, and Read Audiocasts

Expand your media. I started off reading RSS feeds from random locations. Since then I have actively tried to find affiliates to those blogs to read new aspects on different subjects. I’ve started listening to Podcasts to expand my learning even further. Hell I’ve even watched a video or three about design topics. What I’m saying is that the Internet is full of different mediums, and I’d suggest checking out more then the three design sites you may be subscribed to.

When you do find yourself overwhelmed with your intake of information (everyone suffers from information overload) start to prioritize your inputs. If you know 5 sites, and a podcast always bring you the most consistent, well-formed ideas and articles, make the effort to read and hear and see those first. Don’t forget about the others, but when you only have so many hours in a day, It’s beneficial to yourself to keep your eyes on the prize.

So what happens to those neglected feeds? Read them when you have the time. Don’t let them interfere with your day to day life (some of us have jobs that consume their free time) and you can’t let yourself get side-tracked with a 40 minute podcast that ends up being rambling.

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Keeping an Open Mind is the Key to [insert something prophetic here]

I couldn’t think of a cool way to end the header, but the first part is golden. Keep an open mind about what you read. You will, in your travels, come across people who you disagree with. Maybe you have sound reason behind it, maybe you just don’t like the look of their display picture. Try and stay objective about it all.

If you disagree with something, figure out what it is you disagree with, and read up on it. It could be that the article is right on the money and it’s your perception that’s incorrect. The article could also be a total crock, in which case you were right to double-check things. If you feel strongly enough about the topic, I invite you to open discussion with the article writer(s) (if possible) and debate on the subject. Remember not to make personal attacks during these debates, because that just runs a good conversation/opportunity to learn right into the ground.

What I’m getting at here is that you shouldn’t shoot ideas down for pretty much any reason. Even the really, really silly-sounding ones should at least be discussed. Remember that people don’t always talk completely out of their ass. Sometimes, but not always. Discussions and debates allow for an expansion on the topic(s) at hand and everyone – or at the very least you – can walk away with even more knowledge then you would have had by simply reading the original post.

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My personal Stash

And I’m ending this article off with a list of every website I subscribe to, participate in, or otherwise know about. I assume that many of these will be common knowledge, but I hope that someone out there will be able to use at least one of these. Without further ado, the list:

Note: For the record these are not in order of preference.

• A List Apart
• Andy Rutledge: Design View
• Boagworld Web Design Podcast
• Design By Grid
• Digital Photography School
• Firetuts
• Hell Yeah Dude
• i love typography
• ideasonideas
• jQuery Blog
• markboulton.co.uk – Journal
• NETTUTS
• PSDTUTS
• Smashing Magazine
• Subtraction
• The Elements of Typographic Style Applied to the Web
• The GoMediaZine
• TNTpixel
• Tutorial Dog
• Web Design Blog
• Young Go Getter

As for sites that I’m a part of, I’d like to state that though I am a member of some of these, I am not using them to their full potential. I’m working on it.

• Mixx
• Digg
• Design Float
• Chawlk
• 9rules
• design:related
• Behance Network

I would actually love anyone and everyone willing to contribute to comment on this post with their favorite Feeds, Blogs, Social sites, and/or other resources that you use to gain insight into the world of design.

This is the seventh and final part in an ongoing series of articles that depicts my process to becoming a graphic designer. I hope that anyone who followed along with this series can come away with something from it. I thank you for taking the time to read the ramblings of someone who happens to love design, despite having the official documentation to back it up.

Have fun, and keep learning.

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• Part One
• Part Two
• Part Three
• Part Four
• Part Five
• Part Six
• Part Seven (Currently Reading)

Know your time lines and stick to them

This is pretty straightforward people. Know when you need to deliver things by (milestones, project builds, documents, etc) and make sure they’re delivered by that date/time. When things start slipping from the timeline, then it just compounds as one section runs into another. Believe me when I say that there is only so much overlap you can orchestrate before something breaks. Think Jenga.

On that same note, make sure that your time requirements are accurate. I cannot stress that enough. If you think something should only take you an hour, give yourself 2. If you end up ahead of schedule, great! You’ve just created buffer time for when something goes wrong. I’m not advocating giving yourself a week to do a day-long job, but be realistic with your time lines, not optimistic.

Don’t bother getting mad, you’ll only give yourself a hernia

I learned this about half way through the project, which is depressing because had I learned sooner I wouldn’t be as sick as I have been. Stressing out and getting upset by every mishap isn’t worth the energy expended to do so. The phrase “No use crying over spilled milk” has never wrung so true as it has for me during this time.

I realized that getting upset doesn’t do anyone any good, and only serves to fray already shot nerves. Realize that thing’s aren’t going according to plan, and plot out a logical course of action. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t care that your project is 1 hour before a presentation to 100 important people and not working. Far from, actually. What I’m saying is that muttering your last rights in the corner as you rock back and forth in a fetal position isn’t going to do anyone any good.

Don’t play the blame game, but don’t let things slide either

This was a big one for me. Throughout the entire project, my mantra has been (and probably will always be for projects): “I don’t care why it was broken, so long as it’s fixed now.” What This means is that I don’t care who’s fault it may or may not be. I care that the project is continuing to move toward its goal now that the problem has been overcome.

If someone’s not pulling their weight, fix it. If someone made a mistake, tell them. People are responsible for their action or lack there of. That doesn’t mean you should go pinning the blame on people when something goes haywire. Explain the problem like an adult, and approach it like an adult. Saying “You didn’t do X so fix it now” isn’t going to get you the warm reception you’re expecting. People get defensive when you attack them head on, and this is how arguments over stupid topics start.

Think before you open your damned mouth

This one was/is hard for me. I have a habit of shooting my mouth off when I shouldn’t and I know it. This translates directly into how I work with others, and I have to make a conscious effort to think about what I’m saying and how I’m saying it. I’ve noted a couple times during this project that I’ve sounded like a complete dick. I don’t mean to, but because I worded things badly it makes me look like a jerkhole.

Before you click the send button, open your mouth, or pick up the pen, think. Figure out what you want to say and how you want to say it. Try and make sure you’re not being out-right offensive (unless that’s your goal) and be concise. Taking the extra five seconds can make the resulting exchange that much easier.

Write it down

There were so many times when steps in installation, documentation, development, and God knows where else were overlooked, ignored, or outright forgotten. If you happen to have the goldfish memory that I do, you will benefit from this. Writing things down at least gives you a paper-trail to work with. If you find yourself taking a lot of notes, give them a time stamp. Use different colours of pens and/r highlighters to signify different sections or notation types.

I’ve found that by the time I’ve taken to write down what I want to remember, it’s already locked in my head. The simple act of writing it down seems to solidify the memory so that the note I just took is now no longer required, as my brain has done its job.

Writing things down has the added bonus of allowing others to know what you know. If you’re not going to be around for a while, at least others have your notes to work from. Sure they could be utterly insane to anyone that isn’t you, but at least it’s something.

P.S. The same goes for commenting code.

Pay attention

Try and keep tabs on where everyone is in their time lines. If you need something from someone, make sure that when you need it, they haven’t swanned off to a meeting or vacation. There’s nothing worse then being ahead of the game, only to be brought back down or even pulled behind on your deliverables because Adam McMoron has decided to try and get Finance Girls number.

If you’re in charge of people, make sure that they aren’t playing minesweeper or Facebooking their best friend thrice-removed. I know it sounds stupid, but if you give people a week to do something, they’ll find a way to make it last a week. I’m not saying you need to have armed guards holding their families hostage to make sure they’re working efficiently, but make sure you know what’s going on. Schedule end-of-day meetings, or set up mandatory emails stating what they’ve been doing. If you want to get really stingy, find a time-logging program that you and your underlings can use.

Despite popular belief, assuming only makes an ass of you

It’s not their fault when you assumed something. Assumptions are guesses based on half-information and the ethers. If you have to assume something, there hasn’t been enough communication. If you find yourself saying things like “He’s supposed to be doing it” or “It should be here monday” you are assuming. Words like ‘should’ and ‘supposed’ are bad news.

You can avoid assuming by simply confirming what you think. If you think the package will be here on Monday, call the postal service. If you think that someone is supposed to be doing a job, ask them. The bottom line here is that assuming will end up biting you in the ass. Sometimes you assume right, but I assure you that most of the time you will assume very wrong.

Learn from your mistakes, lest you repeat them

During this project, there was a night that I was at work for 40 hours. Why? simply put: the shit got fucked up. I cannot and will not go into the details as to what happened or why, but suffice it to say that bad time-management, assumptions and flat out bad luck found most of the team working well into the next day. It sucked but we managed.

One month later, it happened again.

What the hell happened? Different problems, but many of the same root causes. Assumptions were made, time was mis-managed, and we weren’t paying attention where we should have. As a result the work that was scheduled for 9 AM didn’t begin until 9 PM. There’s no excuse for this, and I won’t make one. I know where the flaws are now, and I’ll be Goddamned if I’m going to let it happen again.

That’s all for now. I’m sure when the project is totally finished, I’ll do a postmortem and regale you with even more fun tidbits that you can use (or ignore, though that would be silly.)

Photo credit: Stock.xchng – Jonathan Natiuk

I’m bringing this up from an exceptionally small thing I noticed while at work today. As I have previously stated, I work with SharePoint. Much of the time I am branding it (though not in my current project!) and so I have a rather intimate and abusive relationship with the program. I find myself constantly finding weird styling quirks put into the environment that prove that SharePoint was built by a large group of people.

There are many instances within SharePoint – and I’m sure within WSS as well – where certain styles that should be consistent end up being done completely different ways. I wish I had a screen shot as an example, but you’ll have to use your imagination here. Picture two dropdown buttons. When you hover over them, they glow, and a menu appears. No picture the HTML for both dropdown buttons being completely different, with no shared styles or markup whatsoever.

This happens all over the place. Hell, there is markup all over the place that is either broken, non-standard (don’t get me started on WSS/SharePoint and it’s default markup) and over 6 thousand lines of styles if you add up all the sheets. 6 thousand! There is no need for that, and yet it exists because of – say it with me now – the lack of consistency.This lack of consistency then cascades down to people like me, who are stuck styling the damned things. Had there been a discussion between the differing groups, or the markup left to a third group so that they could all be structured the same way other peoples lives would then be made easier.

Another example I can bring up is with code. My code, my co-workers code, random interweb code, it happens everywhere. It is far more frequent when you work on rapid products, or many projects that build off of their predecessor. I can speak from experience that unless you code with the future in mind you will end up patching things… usually more than once.

In a perfect world you’d be able to properly scope your work out, develop your use cases, figure out your flow, and develop in a modular, expandable way. This of course requires a couple things: Time, patience, and knowledge. I can assure you that even if you think you have all three you don’t. The only time this can ever happen is when you are developing something for yourself and even then more often than not you’re just throwing something together for your own use, and those tend to be the worst for patch jobs… at least from my experience.

In the end all I can say is plan things out. Figure out a system and stick to it; even if it’s not the best it will at least not be the best everywhere. This makes it much easier to upgrade/fix later on. If you come up with 5 different solutions for 5 different things when they could all share common attributes, you are just making more work for yourself.

Save your time, your brain, and your fellow workers from the agony of added work brought about by inconsistency. Get a game plan, stick with it, and for the love of god: be consistent.

P.S. I managed to spell consistency wrong every time in this post while writing it.

P.P.S. Except for the one in the first postscript.

Update:

Success! I have a screen shot of the dropdown menus in question!
(Technically this update happened before the post went public, but whatever)

Scope creep was rampant to a scale that I have not experienced since, and that’s saying something. I’ve had projects where I’ve been up for over 40 hours straight working because of scope creep, and I can assure that none of them fell anywhere near what I was supposed to do for this company. On top of that, every section had to have their own way of doing things, and I had to try and figure out how to fit it all together in one neat, little package.

Though the result is obvious already, I’ll press on. I swear I have a point to make with all of this.

I’d like to say that I worked as hard as I possibly could have, and that it all turned out great. I can’t, obviously, but I’d like to. Once the realization that the project could not possibly be done by someone with my abilities, i started to freak-out, which translated into slacking off. Like I stated previously, scope creep was everywhere, but it was not the only problem. The other major problem was a complete and utter fail at the effort estimates by both my employers and myself. Who knew that it took more than 4 months for anyone to make a CMS? Apparently we didn’t.

To add to this, I was younger, way less experienced, lazier, and my work ethic was roughly at the sub-par level. Throw in the fact that I had just started dating someone, and you get a bad collection of attributes to add to the already meaty mix of failure. I can admit to the fact that I did not work as had as I could have, and though that did contribute to the problem, even working at my best it was still a futile attempt. I’m not trying to lessen my blame or guilt here (I do feel it, believe me) I’m just explaining the situation.

Lets move forward in time to now. More specifically to last night. I was curious to see how they were doing. I logged onto the site in Firefox, and my eyes started to bleed. Then all of those repressed memories came flooding back, and I recalled how I just couldn’t get the damned thing to render in FF. Granted, FF was only in its 1.0 stage and had issues, but it all basically comes down to my lack of experience that lead to the horror that I was looking at. “My God, they’re using it,” I said to myself “they’re actually using it!” I looked around, and dear God they were still updating it too. So even after I did a piss-poor job with it all, they were actually using it.

It started eating me up inside. I couldn’t let that just sit there. I had the knowledge, the power, and the will to at least try and rectify the situation. I’ve gained so much experience over the last three years that I should be able to fix what I had done to the site in no time at all. I wouldn’t try making a CMS but damn it, I could fix that markup.

That’s when I realized how far I’d actually come since then. It’s only been three years (less, technically) and my experience is so much more superior to what it was then that my mind actually crapped itself a little. As I looked at that website, I realized I could remake the imagery and the markup in a couple days tops. It took me weeks back then. Even the way I did the CMS – such as it was – seems far simpler now then it ever did then. Hell, i remember spending days trying to figure out how the hell to do a recursive function to create the menu, as I hadn’t been taught them by this point. I eat recursive functions for breakfast now, though they all basically taste the same.

I’ll wait for the laughter to die down before I continue. If you didn’t laugh, you’re not a programmer or you don’t appreciate nerd humor. That’s your problem, not mine.

What I’m getting at here is that every once in a while you need to be reminded with just how far you’ve come. It’s sort of like looking at your grade 2 math homework, and laughing at how simple it is now. It’s like re-reading the first book you ever read, just to see how much easier it is now. Take a step back and look at what you do now. Look back a couple years and look at what you did then, and revel in how far you’ve come. Be proud of what you can do now, even if it doesn’t seem like enough for what you need to do.

You’ve got your goals, and that’s important. It’s also important to look at your progress to those goals to get that boost of confidence.

Oh, and for the record: I’m remaking the website imagery and markup, and I’m planning to email it to them. They can do with it what they wish, but at least I’ll feel better. As it turns out, I’m about a 3rd done, and it’s taken me about 3 hours of effort thus far. 3 hours versus multiple weeks.

I’m proud of what I can do now.

To achieve coffee shop-level relaxation, you need six things:

1. A Comfy Seat
   This is key, you cannot relax without a good, squishy, comfy seat to rest your bum on. I don’t think anyone can truly relax on a stone bench. I’m not saying you can’t use a bench, but I doubt you will hit your optimal relaxation point.
2. A Drink
   I’m not sure why but hot drinks tend to work better, even in warm weather. Try and get something that is as pleasing to smell as it is to taste. I’m a fan of French vanilla or raspberry flavours when I’m trying to relax. If you have to get something cold, try and something of the slurpy or slushy variety. They are more fulfilling to consume.
3. A Snack
   The snack is pinnacle to the whole system. It has to be something you can break apart with one hand, so it has to be smooshy or break-up-able. It can’t be messy lest you ruin whatever you are reading. It also has to compliment whatever you are drinking so that you don’t get conflicting tastes. My suggestion is a good blueberry muffin. Almost everything goes with Blueberry except and sort of anti-berry drink such as turpentine.
4. Something to Read
   A novel or similar one-handed book works best, though I’m sure you can still work it with a news paper or larger book. Try and avoid anything digital; not only is it harder on the eyes, but I find electronics stimulate too much of the brain. Make sure you’re reading something you are generally interested in. Just because you can read the dictionary, doesn’t mean you should. If you’re into that go for it, but I have a suspicion that you don’t get invited to many parties.
5. A Table or Or Other Surface to Place Your Stuff
   A table or similar surface is what I’m referring to. If you can get it on the side in which all of your non-book items are going, even better. The trick is to move as little as needed when going for your drink or food. Try and get one at a good hight too. Nothing is more annoying then having to reach too far up or down just to get to your food.
6. Ambient or White-Noise in the Background
   This is what really makes the difference. Coffee shops have people talking in the background, my work has a server and lots of key-clicking. Whatever is your backdrop noise, make sure it’s mild and pleasant. Try and avoid fast music or anything with a pronounced “Thump” beat.

If you meet these six conditions, you can actually become exceptionally relaxed merely by enjoying then in union. I managed to do it, and it’s probably the most relaxed I’ve been in a while; and at work no less! You’ll know when you’re relaxed when everything goes “wuanh.” I’m aware that that was a noise, and not an identifiable one, but when it happens that’s what you’ll feel. It’s the same sort of feeling when time forgets about you.

One more thing, remember that you cannot force it. If you try and make the relaxation happen, it wont. The trick is to get caught up in the moment, or the book, or both. You’ll be relaxing in no time.