Sunday, March 25, 2007

Word to the Wise #3

I once knew a build-master on an IT project. He was a lot like a bartender: a quiet, older gent whose role was removed from the day-to-day chaos of the project. He didn't say much, but when he did, it was good stuff.

One day, he and I were talking about two senior developers on the team. Both had 30+ years of experience in comp sci, and yet one had a stellar reputation and strong output while the other, er, did not (high diplomacy here).

At one point in the conversation, the build-master looked me square in the eye and said, in his sage tone:

There is a difference between having 30 years of software experience and merely being in the industry for 30 years.


Indeed. Put another way, there is a difference between being active and being passive: may we all stay active and hone our skills...
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2 comments:

  1. Mike VennemanMarch 26, 2007 at 6:25 AM

    I think I know that man. Indeed, I am sure we all know such a person. Quiet and wise, good person to know.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dale WilsonApril 27, 2007 at 7:11 AM

    Another way to express this thought is:

    There's a big difference between having 30 years of experience and having 1 year of experience 30 times.

    ReplyDelete