Christmas Bay in Southeast Texas
Fishing is my passion – specifically, fishing the Texas Gulf Coast, either wading or kayaking. I grew up fishing, and have many fond memories angling with my Dad and my Granddad. I’m not sure if it is simply being outside, the water, or the actual fish, but whatever it is, I think and dream about fishing (and all of its wet, grimy and expensive trappings).
The picture you see here is of a small inlet called Cold Pass. Cold Pass flows into Christmas Bay, which is about two hours South of Houston, Texas. I fish here quite a bit, and I really like this particular picture because of its simplicity and the location. This is the kind of fishing I love: calm backwater bays, sloughs and bayous full of (hopefully) hungry redfish.
I am also passionate about IT. Not necessarily about the technology itself, but about changing and managing perceptions about corporate technology organizations. Unfortunately, in many organizations, IT is a black box. It is often seen as expensive and murky, and when you put something in (people and money), usually nothing comes out – or what comes out is not what you wanted. A lot like fishing.
It is the intersection of these two passions that have led me to this blog. It is also the intersection of the key lessons I learned from my both my fishing and business mentors:
- Be patient, but don’t linger: be prepared for a long haul, but if something is not working, stop doing it and do something else.
- Don’t chase fads: use the new stuff only once you have a solid foundation in place.
- Be respectful to those around you: you never know when you’ll need their help .
Over time, I’ve learned that these lessons can be applied to my passion and to leading and managing effective technology organizations. I think they have served me well (time will tell) and I continue to use them today.
This blog will not be confined to any specific technology but will be an amalgam of thoughts, trends and lessons learned along the way, specifically as they relate to directing and managing IT in a fast moving, global and mobile environment – environments where people and projects come together anywhere in the world, anytime.
There will be some posts that are technical in nature, but the majority will be focused on aligning technology investments with corporate growth imperatives, driving bottom line savings and using technology and policy to reduce risk. In most instances, I’ll attempt to include some practical, usable advice for IT leaders.
Oh, and there may be an occasional fish story…
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This looks like it will be a great blog. Nice storytelling and nice pictures.
I spent this summer trying to catch my first muskie. I will post a picture when I succeed.
Thanks for the feedback Will – the chase is almost always better than the catch!
[...] consistently and effectively execute is a directly tied to a strong operating platform, which is a key lesson learned: don’t chase fads; use the new stuff only once you have a solid foundation in [...]