So many times, in our lives, we don't hear the works "Thanks" and I think that is something that is missing in the world today.
I know that hearing that single word can really make a difference to how I feel about things and where I will spend my time and effort. Recently, through the different things that I do, I have had the chance to hear that word a few times, and it makes me want to help out just that little bit more.
So many people say that they are too busy to acknowledge the effort of others, but I think these are the people that don't understand that if you want someone to go that extra mile for you, let them know, you appreciate what they do for you. It doesn't take a lot of time to say "Thanks" so even a quick message/e-mail to let them know you appreciate their work can go a long way.
This week was also a little different as I saw some people that I hadn't seen for a number of years and I found out how much they cared about me, as a person. A simple hug, or even a smile and a good hand-shake, says a lot. One person made me realize how much they valued my friendship when I surprised them at work, and I got a lot of hugs from him. You don't always need the hugs, but sometimes it sure does help when you are feeling a little low.
So next time when you appreciate what someone else has done, make sure you say "Thanks" so that they know they are appreciated.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Roller Coaster
Some people enjoy riding a roller coaster for the fun of it. I have never been on a roller coaster, and sometimes I don't think I need to ride one because my life seems to be a roller coaster.
A roller coaster varies in speed and goes up and down, just like life does so often. The roller coaster that I am currently on is trying to do too many things are once and not being able to control them like I feel I should. Yes, I know that in a lot of cases, I am my own worse enemy because instead of trying to focus on one thing and get it off my to-do list, I am trying to figure out a bunch of them at once.
It is interesting to think about my life as a roller coaster because sometimes I think life goes off the track, but in most cases it's just my thinking that goes off. Knowing what I can and cannot handle or control is something that is difficult for me to see sometimes. In a lot of cases, I am worrying about things that I cannot control instead of focusing on the things that I can control and manage. Being able to sit back and think things through is something that I don't always do as well as I would like, but I am getting better at it.
A roller coaster is supposed to be fun, so I guess life should be fun as well, instead of something that I am always worrying about. Knowing that I can accept things as they are is important, and enjoying the little pleasures in life along the way are what I need to focus on.
Now off to enjoy the ride.
A roller coaster varies in speed and goes up and down, just like life does so often. The roller coaster that I am currently on is trying to do too many things are once and not being able to control them like I feel I should. Yes, I know that in a lot of cases, I am my own worse enemy because instead of trying to focus on one thing and get it off my to-do list, I am trying to figure out a bunch of them at once.
It is interesting to think about my life as a roller coaster because sometimes I think life goes off the track, but in most cases it's just my thinking that goes off. Knowing what I can and cannot handle or control is something that is difficult for me to see sometimes. In a lot of cases, I am worrying about things that I cannot control instead of focusing on the things that I can control and manage. Being able to sit back and think things through is something that I don't always do as well as I would like, but I am getting better at it.
A roller coaster is supposed to be fun, so I guess life should be fun as well, instead of something that I am always worrying about. Knowing that I can accept things as they are is important, and enjoying the little pleasures in life along the way are what I need to focus on.
Now off to enjoy the ride.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Getting things back in focus
Things sometimes get out of control, and it takes some time and effort to get things back to the way that makes you happy. This is a challenge for a lot of people, and that is taking the time to get things back to where they should be. I have encountered just this challenge in the last couple of weeks, and now I am taking the time to sit and think.
It is sometimes the hardest thing to do, just sit and think because like a lot of people there are always too many other things that need to be done. Having a chance to refocus and understand what has happened and why helps make the future a little easier. The challenge I was facing was dealing with an online course that was not well-designed or executed. My choice was to continue with the online course and suffer through it, or to walk away and know that I did what was right for me. The decision came this week when after a couple of major frustrations with the course, I decided that I couldn’t continue with it and needed to walk away. I contacted the university that was offering the course and explained my feelings to them. I also had to write an e-mail explaining everything, and then I was refunded my course fee and am no longer taking the course. I have taken other online courses through colleges and never felt this way about the course, instructors, or material before, so this was extremely hard for me to deal with.
The course was something that I really wanted to take, but understood that if I wasn’t learning anything and just getting frustrated, it wasn’t a course worth taking. Maybe part of it was feeling that the instructors didn’t understand the material, or maybe they weren’t comfortable with online training. I know that I was really frustrated with the length of time the assignment took to be marked and even how long it took to get answers to e-mails. The length was a lot longer than I ever dealt with during any of the other courses I took. This is the first course that I have tried to take through a university, and it sure wasn’t the experience I wanted.
I know that having a Certificate for Instructing Adults makes it a little different for me taking courses know because I understand what is expected from instructors. I have taken courses and seminars where the instructor has been great, and somewhere the instructor wasn’t the best, but normally I learned something anyway. This online course was proving to be a course where I wasn’t going to learn, so I am happy I decided to walk away.
I have taken some time, figured things out and understand why I was unhappy the last couple of weeks. Now, maybe I can focus on the things that make me happy, and I realize that taking the time to sit and just think was the best thing I could have done today.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Back-up of computer files
The purpose of backing up a computer system is to ensure you have the most complete, consistence and accurate copy of files as possible as a set.
Backing up a computer system should be done at a time of day that results in the fewest files and users being impacted. Most small/medium companies back up their files late at night to ensure the highest accuracy, completeness, and consistency of data sets.
Backing up systems during the day or just after the normal end of a business day can result in some files not getting backed-up for days if they are files that are updated continuously during the day. Open file agents are still not 100%. It is important to remember that the purpose of a backup is to have an accurate copy of files in case a restore of a file or an entire system is required.
A backup schedule late at night means the fewest users and files impacted. It is important to remember that a backup done during a business day impacts users by slowing down response time and files, and results in an incomplete backup. Some data sets are spread among multiple files, if they are not backed up with the same consistency state, then they are as good as corrupted, a typical example are databases.
The scheduling of a backup isn’t when it’s convenient for the system administrator, but when it’s best for the specific business. I have heard of system administrators setting their backup schedule so that they can see it start (tail wagging the dog).
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Taking Time
Some days, there seems to be just too many things to do. We all have those days when juggling too many things can be disastrous. I know, I have those days and find that, sometimes, I just need to take some time and regroup.
It's hard to think of taking a bit of downtime in the middle of a crazy day, but it does help. Being able to escape from the chaos can really assist in getting a clearer head and refocusing. I am not saying take hours, but sometimes even 5 or 10 minutes away from everything demanding your attention helps. A walk around the office or a refresh of your glass of water can help. If you can't get away, then just closing your eyes and taking a few deep breaths can help clear your head and make the tasks a bit easier.
I know that life demands us to juggle several things at once, but managing how many items being juggled is what is important. I, for one, have had a habit of trying to juggle too many things at once, resulting in a feeling of everything crashing down on me sometimes. In some cases, writing down what needs to get done really helps. Remembering to take the time to refocus also helps.
Setting time for yourself is extremely important to help deal with all the demands now-a-days. To tackle the days when there are too many things to get done, remember "Take a deep breath and tackle one thing at a time." Taking time to regroup and refocus is what we all need to do.
It's hard to think of taking a bit of downtime in the middle of a crazy day, but it does help. Being able to escape from the chaos can really assist in getting a clearer head and refocusing. I am not saying take hours, but sometimes even 5 or 10 minutes away from everything demanding your attention helps. A walk around the office or a refresh of your glass of water can help. If you can't get away, then just closing your eyes and taking a few deep breaths can help clear your head and make the tasks a bit easier.
I know that life demands us to juggle several things at once, but managing how many items being juggled is what is important. I, for one, have had a habit of trying to juggle too many things at once, resulting in a feeling of everything crashing down on me sometimes. In some cases, writing down what needs to get done really helps. Remembering to take the time to refocus also helps.
Setting time for yourself is extremely important to help deal with all the demands now-a-days. To tackle the days when there are too many things to get done, remember "Take a deep breath and tackle one thing at a time." Taking time to regroup and refocus is what we all need to do.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Finding the time
It is very important to find time to do things that you are passionate about. I know that we all have busy lives, but it's so important to remember that if you are passionate about something, you need to make the time for it.
I know that I love crafting, and I make sure that most days I at least spend 30 minutes doing a bit of crafting, be it knitting, crocheting or cross-stitch. Everyone has something they can do, even if it's curling up and reading for that time. Spending that quality time can make everything else seem so much easier because in so many ways it's a stress release.
Another thing that I am passionate about is writing, and it is something that I haven't spent enough time on lately, and I know that I need to change that. For so long I was writing a bit every day and then like most people I got busy doing other things and I let it slide. Now it's time to put my writing back on the calendar on a daily basis and know that it will really help me.
Always remember that if you are passionate about something, it's important to set some time aside at least weekly to make sure that you do it. Some of my thinking has changed over the last little while, and that was after a discussion with someone. This man made me realize that I am passionate about my writing, and I need to do more of it, and I think him for that.
A few words a day is what I need to do, and that is what I will do.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Communication
Nowadays, we all seem to have too many demands on our time. It doesn't matter who you talk to, everyone says the same thing, "there isn't enough time to get everything done." The computer was supposed to make life easier, but now with all the different ways to communicate, everyone wants their answer right away.
I know that we have had to set our mobile devices to automatically turn off at night and on in the morning, otherwise we would be woken up in the middle of the night by the notification of new messages. Also, setting which accounts notify us of new messages has also made managing messages a little easier. The other practice we have is if we are in meetings we are only notified when specific accounts get messages and this is done by setting our notification to silent mode, so it only vibrates. Yes, we have more than one account that goes to our mobile device.
Being able to take some time away from constant contact can be so rewarding. I think people understand that sometimes answers aren't going to be immediate no matter how hard they try.
Have you ever got a phone call from someone right after they have sent you can email? Normally the call is a repeat of the email or a request for an answer immediately. These normally are the emails that require some research before an answer can be given.
It is important to remember that one means of communication can fail, so if it is URGENT to communicate with someone, ensure you try to communicate with them in more than one method. Emails sometimes don't get through due to technical issues same as texting or instant messages or the person is in an area with low or no reception. So remember, if it's urgent, try multiple methods of communication.
So before I have everyone yelling, remember how we communicate before email and cell phones. It did take a bit longer to get an answer, but we survived.
Make sure that you sometimes take a little bit of a break from being constantly reachable. Everyone needs a break every once in a while, so respect others when they take a bit longer to reply to a message. We don't know everyone's total schedule, so understand you aren't going to get immediate responses each time you send out some communication.
Modern communication has made things easier in a lot of ways because we can get the message anywhere, but remember we still need time to get other things done. So maybe one day we won't be saying, "there isn't enough time to get everything done." Until that time, understand the demands on everyone's time and remember you're not the only one asking for their attention.
I know that we have had to set our mobile devices to automatically turn off at night and on in the morning, otherwise we would be woken up in the middle of the night by the notification of new messages. Also, setting which accounts notify us of new messages has also made managing messages a little easier. The other practice we have is if we are in meetings we are only notified when specific accounts get messages and this is done by setting our notification to silent mode, so it only vibrates. Yes, we have more than one account that goes to our mobile device.
Being able to take some time away from constant contact can be so rewarding. I think people understand that sometimes answers aren't going to be immediate no matter how hard they try.
Have you ever got a phone call from someone right after they have sent you can email? Normally the call is a repeat of the email or a request for an answer immediately. These normally are the emails that require some research before an answer can be given.
It is important to remember that one means of communication can fail, so if it is URGENT to communicate with someone, ensure you try to communicate with them in more than one method. Emails sometimes don't get through due to technical issues same as texting or instant messages or the person is in an area with low or no reception. So remember, if it's urgent, try multiple methods of communication.
So before I have everyone yelling, remember how we communicate before email and cell phones. It did take a bit longer to get an answer, but we survived.
Make sure that you sometimes take a little bit of a break from being constantly reachable. Everyone needs a break every once in a while, so respect others when they take a bit longer to reply to a message. We don't know everyone's total schedule, so understand you aren't going to get immediate responses each time you send out some communication.
Modern communication has made things easier in a lot of ways because we can get the message anywhere, but remember we still need time to get other things done. So maybe one day we won't be saying, "there isn't enough time to get everything done." Until that time, understand the demands on everyone's time and remember you're not the only one asking for their attention.
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