Another week in the socially-distanced economy. Not so much to write about this week as I spent most of it working or studying… and avoiding idiots who ignore the one-way system in the local supermarket…
Some more observations on remote working
It’s not often my tweets get as much engagement as this one did. So I’m putting it on the blog too (along with my wife’s response):
It has been highlighted (by @Nikki_LMC, who is well placed to observe) that I'm not always great at taking my own advice… particularly around breaks and adequate sleep…
— Mark Wilson ???? (@markwilsonit) May 18, 2020
My “Build Box”
Unfortunately, I didn’t get to watch the Microsoft Build virtual event this week. I’m sure I’ll catch up later but it was great to receive this gift from Microsoft – it seems I was one of the first few thousand to register for the event:
It's here: my #Build Box has arrived! Thanks @Microsoft #MSBuild pic.twitter.com/rgLZUcmVEi
— Mark Wilson ???? (@markwilsonit) May 18, 2020
Annual review
I still love this "Corporate Video", which started me on the road to working for #risual. Today is the 5th anniversary of my joining the #risualfam https://t.co/hQtK8bwc8N
— Mark Wilson ???? (@markwilsonit) May 18, 2020
This week was my fifth anniversary of joining risual. Over that time I’ve watched the company grow and adapt, whilst trying to retain the culture that made it so strong in the early days. I don’t know if it’s possible to retain a particular culture as a business grows beyond a certain size but I admire the attempts that are made and one of those core tenets is an annual review with at least one if not both of the founding Directors.
For some, that’s a nerve-wracking experience but I generally enjoy my chat with Rich (Proud) and Al (Rogers), looking back on some of the key achievements of the last year and plans for the future. Three years ago, we discussed “career peak”. Two years ago it was my request to move to part-time working. Last year, it was my promotion to Principal Architect. This year… well, that should probably remain confidential.
One thing I found particularly useful in my preparation was charting the highs and lows of my year. It was a good way to take stock – which left me feeling a lot better about what I’d achieved over the last 12 months. For obvious reasons, the image below has had the details removed, but it should give some idea of what I mean:
It took a while to pull together (and sorry, I've blurred out all the juicy bits) but this "My Year In Review" slide that I've created for my upcoming annual review does make me feel a bit better about what I've achieved in the last 12 months… #selfreflection pic.twitter.com/krkheJF3ii
— Mark Wilson ???? (@markwilsonit) April 29, 2020
Another exam ticked off the expanding list
I wrapped up the work week with another exam pass (after last week’s disappointment) – AZ-301 is finally ticked off the list… taking me halfway to being formally recognised as an Azure Solutions Architect Expert.
I’ll be re-taking AZ-300 soon. And then it looks like two more “Microsoft fundamentals” exams have been released (currently in Beta):
Both of these fit nicely alongside some of the topics I’ve been covering in my current client engagement so I should be in a position to attempt them soon.