Why you shouldn't become an archivist

This site, Xtranormal, has a software that will take your spoken words and add a movie.  The technology is so simplistic that it is funny.  The argument is biting and hysterical, in large part because of the monotonous computerized voices.

Looking for a job

I have lots of stuff I am doing and want to do.  My wife and kids have been great about tightening the budget while I am in transition.  But the frustrations are starting to build.

I'm a software guy.  I get software.  I like software.  I enjoy turning ideas into requirements, and requirements into design.  I love testing and tweaking.  I love the power that good software has to become a force multiplier and dramatically change the way that the world works.

But I don't have a traditional software background.  My degree is a BA in Christian Ministry.  In a hiring market where there are hundreds of qualified resumes for every position, that degree is a serious hindrance.

My personal projects are all either outright Christian/spiritual (Pray with Friends) or at least public service oriented (the Hiring Survey, Democracy 2.0.)  During a time of prayer the other day I had the idea* that I might should look specifically at Christian organizations that either develop software or that could use websites/software in their work.

(* I'm hesitant to say that God gave me this idea, even though it did come during a time of prayer.  I've had experiences where I was sure that God said "go", and I felt comfortable going in His name.  This was not one of those times.  This was more gentle.  It seemed like it came from within, as opposed to above.  But if it gets me where He wants me to go, then He will get the credit....)

There are a whole lot of different things that I could do for a Christian organization.  That's been part of my problem with the job search so far.  I'm a generalist in a specialist market.  But here are a few ideas:
* I could lead in the design and development of software systems (web sites, applications, iPhone apps, etc.).
* I could help clients (churches, grant-recipient organizations, etc.) implement a software system (or systems).
* I could manage a development team, implementation team, or support team.

I would enjoy designing a Bible study site where people could "vote" on interpretations and discuss applications of specific verses.

I could fold PrayWithFriends.org into an existing ministry--it would make a great addition to most any Christian community site.

I'm going to catalog a list of companies that I think might be good targets.  I'll update the list as I find new ones.  I'd appreciate any organizations that you might know of.

I am not comfortable raising my own support.  I know several people who do it, including a few family members and close friends.  I'm happy for them and have no trouble supporting them (when I'm able.)  But that is just not my personality.  So I'm looking for a salary-type staff position, not a raise-your-own-support position.  If an organization only works in the raise-your-own-support mode then I'll cross them off.

Para-church organizations:
Focus on the Family (pinged one contact)
Crosswalk.com
Campus Crusade (pinged one contact)
Youth with a Mission
Navigators (pinged one contact)
Gideons
Wycliffe (raise-your-own-support only?)
Jaars (raise-your-own-support only?)
Samaritan's Purse
Disciples Portal.com
GodTube / Tangle
LifeChurch
YouVersion.com/


Church management software:
ACS Technologies
Power Church Software
Church Windows Software
Church Soft
Church Community Builder
Servant PC
Church Pro
Logos Church Management Software
CCIS Church Management Software
Fellowship Technologies
Interaction We Gather.com
Service U for Churches
Helpmate Technology Solutions
iChurch
By the Book
Faithful Steward
Last Days Software
Shelby Inc.



Bible software:
Bible Explorer
Biblesoft
e-Sword
Logos
Bible Study Pro
OliveTree
Bible Works
Theophilos
Quickverse
the Word Bible Software
Crosswire
Word Search
Laridian


What others am I missing?

Can you tell me something interesting about any of these?

My story

The Hill Country Bible Church Job Club had a new speaker this morning, Barbara Salisbury of Face Forward Life Coaching. Barbara gave us a nice model for outlining and telling our story. I've done much of this already, but not organized this well. And I realized that my vision had changed some in the past few months. So here's my (updated) story, according to Barbara's outline.

My Needs

Wife, four kids, mortgage, car payments, etc.
We home school, and there are many expenses for curriculum and activities.
Soon the first of four kids will need a car and auto insurance.
The oldest kid will be heading to college in a few years.
My retirement is seriously underfunded right now.
I need time to work on my hobbies.
And I need a job that will help me learn what I need in order to develop my Democracy 2.0 vision.

My Values

Pragmatism
Truth
Honesty
Continual improvement
Making a difference
New ideas

My Gifts and Talents

I am a very fast learner, especially with conceptual information.
I am good at explaining difficult concepts to others.
I am constantly learning, always digging for new information from any field.
I see the patterns in life.
I synthesize all of that information, and create frameworks that help me predict the future.
I am a very good communicator, especially when I have time to prepare.
I have a constant stream of new ideas.
I do not stop. Ever.

My Personality

INTJ. Highly introverted. Highly intuitive. Highly thinking. Borderline judging versus perceiving.
I require time alone for optimum functioning.
I think best alone, often while doing mundane chores like sweeping.
I know what I know--this is my favorite description of an INTJ.
I am not afraid.
I would greatly prefer to give you one laser sentence instead of a cluster-bomb of thoughts.
I sometimes come across as arrogant.
I like writing over speaking because I can edit.

My Mission Statement (process)

I work in small groups to implement big ideas. The more creative and the quicker to implement, the better.

My Vision Statement (goal)

My tombstone will say, "Thank God that Randy was able to explain his vision for Democracy 2.0". Everything between here and there is helping me formulate that.

Open source government

I was thinking about Democracy 2.0 today and I came up with the term "open source government."

It turns out that there are a number of people and organizations already there.  I'm going to work through that wikipedia article and look for a job with one of the organizations listed there (or that I find when I jump off from there.)

But, at first glance, those organizations look to genuinely be on the road that I have been envisioning--even if they are not yet doing it all the way I want it done...  :-)

Mickey McManus is the CEO at Maya, a design organization in Pittsburg that I am interested in going to work for.  This interview will explain why I want to be there.  They are on the cutting edge of doing great design work.

The Third Rail

I am concerned about our dependence on oil.  I understand the multiplier efects of tackling the biggest and most inefficient oil users first.  So I support nuclear, wind, solar, and other alternative power solutions.  

The second-biggest use of oil is in mass transportation, specifically big rig interstate transportation.  We are a long way away from a battery technology that can make multi-day tractor-trailer transportation possible by electric power--our batteries are just not big enough and take too long to charge.  Maybe hydrogen technology will get there.  Maybe we will discover a clean cold method of fusion.  Maybe the clowns at Stoern will build a useful perpetual-motion motor to power free transportation.

I would prefer a solution that didn't require waiting and hoping for an invention.  I would prefer a solution that could be built with current technology.  So I propose that we upgrade our roadway system to include a third rail.

The third rail would be an electric power source, like the third rail on electric rail systems.

No new technology has to be invented to take advantage of this.  We just have to let the market do it's thing.  Tractor-trailer manufacturers will start building trucks that can take advantage of the third rail as the road way reaches a critical mass.  Hybrid and electric car manufacturers will add third rail support to their cars immediately, because supporting that infrastructure makes their vehicles more valuable.

This is just the sort of high-tech infrastructure project that the country seems to need right now.  So an engineering company could probably get a huge government grant to begin the building project and make huge strides in fixing many problems at once.

There are a hundred little implementation details.  I've already thought through many of them.  I would love to work with a proposal team to flesh this out.  I'm not sure if I can get together the resources to found that company on my own, though.

The first big problem is the actual rail itself.  It has to provide a significant voltage, in order to actually power/charge the vehicles.  It has to power down when there is no vehicle present, to keep from frying wandering wildlife.  And it has to withstand traffic, rain, snow, and scorching sun for years with little maintenance.

An inductive rail installed beneath the road surface would be safe from the elements and animals.  The contact points could be either in the wheels (already in contact with the road) or in the center of the lane (requiring a new third wheel to be installed that would make contact/keep the vehicle's inductive contact points in close enough proximity.)  The existing wheels have the disadvantage of wear-and-tear that would probably require additional maintenance of the expensive inductive rail.  The new centerline third wheel would not be weight-bearing, and so it would not cause the same level of wear on the road surface.  So I prefer the center-line solution.

I also expect that the third rail would be chopped up into sections.  This would make the system more robust--a single break would not take down the entire roadway.  Also, sections that did not have a vehicle charging on them could be discretely powered down to save energy.  I'll let the engineers figure out how long the sections should be.

The second big problem is billing.  Fortunately, there are a large number of possible solutions.  The GPS and system and cellular networks in the US are well-enough developed that we can rely on them.  We could also use proximity badges with unique identifiers or toll-tag window stickers.  But I prefer the GPS and cellular solution because of the flexibility (you don't have to build and move toll booths) and interactivity (drivers can choose to not charge on this particular road if the electricity price is too high.)

So each vehicle that was equipped with the third wheel would also need a GPS, cell phone, and small computer.  Then as the vehicle approached a third rail-equipped roadway the computer would get notified by the GPS and cellular.  The driver could choose to lower the third wheel and begin charging on the third rail, and the cellular would alert the billing system that they are charging.  The driver could decide to stop charging before they left the third rail-equiipped road (like if she was within battery disatnce of home and a cheaper recharge.)

With those two big problems solved, the rest of the system can develop naturally.  People in different regions can experiment with taxes or subsidies.  The federal government could start the system on the Interstates, and let the states each invest in upgrading their State Highways as they see fit.  Engineering companies, similar to the ones that build toll-roads today, can work with the various governments to build and maintain the roads.  Hopefully many different companies will get in and compete for the contracts to build and maintain these roads.  They would get a large portion of their revenue from the electric charging--a markup that they include in the bill.  In short, there are many good free-market competitive features of the solution.

This system enables a whole new range of vehicles.  Electric-only vehicles could travel cross-country, and become much more feasible.  Eventually all vehicles could be electric-only--the most oil-efficient type of vehicles.  Gas-electric hybrids gain much more range, in the interim.  And hybrid tractor-trailers become much more feasible in the short-term, and the fuel costs for interstate commerce would be reduced.

Information overload

Frank Childres led the small-group discussion in our Adult Bible Fellowship yesterday.  Frank asked us what standard we were working from in our training of our children.  By way of example he talked about teaching our children how to make decisions.  Making decisions is apparently a topic that Frank has studied extensively in a business context.

Frank said that the volume of information and number of decisions that people are faced with is growing super-fast and has already reached overwhelming proportions in business.  He threw out a lot of examples and technical terminology that I can't remember right now.  I emailed him this morning and asked for pointers to some articles or something to get me started understanding all of this.  In the meantime I wanted to get my initial thoughts out, and this seems as good a place as any.

Information overload is the primary prediction of Future Shock.  (I've referenced it many times.  If you haven't read it then you are behind the curve.  One of these days I'm going to go through it again and write up a cliff note outline for it, but in the meantime you really should go read it.)  So that part of what Frank said really resonated.

I had a significant personal experience with information overload at Journyx, with our Technical Support queue.  We were receiving many more cases per day than we could respond to.  We had to build a triage process.  And we had to build in time to invest in our capabilities to cope with more cases.  And we had to invest in our capabilities to respond to cases faster.

That was the original impetus for me to read Future Shock--looking for suggestions on how to deal with the fire hose I was drinking from.  I don't remember the specifics I found there.  I only remember the strategy that I devised for coping.  Triage, triage, triage.  Set appropriate expectations.  Document every case, and search that documentation on every new case--never solve the same problem twice.  Watch the process and tweak it for every performance improvement you can find.

My small team dealt with a large number of complex bugs and massive number of usage issues, and we received 5 compliments for every complaint--not something that most Technical Support teams can boast.

I have two library books on my desk right now that both deal directly with this issue.  The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and Getting Things Done both deal with strategies for individuals coping with the high demands of modern life.

I especially appreciate two of  Covey's early points:

• He talks extensively about guiding principles.  I hear lots of people quote Covey, but this point seems to be often overlooked.  Covey says that we must "be" before we "do".  He also says that we must be conscious of our guiding principles, and act according to those principles.  
• He talks about balancing productivity with productive capability.  You have to continue to invest in your ability to be productive, as opposed to merely spending all of your time being productive.  Failure to invest in your capabilities leads to burn out--physically, mentally, or spiritually.  Equipment fails without proper maintenance.  Etc.

This leads me to several deeper thoughts about the future shock that we are facing.

1. We are due for a renaissance in focus on maintenance costs.  Equipment that has low maintenance costs can be ignored.  In a civilization where the cost of attention is properly monetized and its scarcity is well understood, equipment that can be ignored will be more valuable.  Eventually this will lead to every piece of equipment being categorized as either disposable or permanent.  There will be no middle ground.  But the definition of permanent will be "zero maintenance through it's expected technological life span."

2. We need to do a better job of learning triage.  This is the proper model for dealing with a fire hose of information and priorities.  Covey and Allen provide good individual models.  We need to develop group triage models.  Emergency rooms have already worked out a model system for us.  We just need to study and apply.  There is a whole new market there, for whomever can become the expert first.

3. One of the other things that Frank said to me (in a different context) was that he was looking for people who had a great "comfort with ambiguity."  I didn't really understand what he was saying at first.  Now I think I get it.  Change happens quickly, and we need to remain very flexible.  Don't nail down anything that doesn't have to be nailed down because we will likely need to move it.

4. This bodes poorly for older workers.  Not just the current group of older workers.  But every generation from here on out will find that they have a harder and harder time keeping up with the pace of change.

5. There is an opportunity for newspapers-like organizations.  They need to focus on "the things you need to know about today" for focused target markets.  They have an engineer edition, and an accountant edition, etc.  Distill all of the secondary information down into the smallest form possible.  And help professionals get their news as quickly as possible.

6. Today's ADD is just the leading edge of tomorrow's successful adaptation to a changing environment.  We're too close to it to see it well--if tree frogs were evolving in front of us we could discuss and understand it.  But we don't have enough perspective to appreciate our own evolution.

7. Every field needs to adapt.  Engineering, teaching, cost accounting, software development, sales, etc.  Each field needs to spend some serious time determining what information overload means to them.

8. More fields needs to formally adopt regimes of continuing education.  (Seems I've said that before.)

9. If you consider the newspaper idea and the continuing education idea together, these are both forms of production capacity investment.  That seems to be a specialization of the future.  How long will it be before we see an MBA degree with a specialization in Production Capacity Investment?  (I would love to spend some time writing the curriculum for that.)

10. As Frank said on Sunday, this is a topic that parents need to add to their radar.  We can't let our adults in training out of the house without teaching them how to deal with information overload as they make decisions.

11. The future will reward specialization more and more.  But the value of each individual specialization will decay faster and faster.  Society will have to adapt by encouraging more retraining and learning new specialties.

What do you do?

I was thinking about how to explain what I do.  If you know me, let me know what you think of this description:

I'm the expert at aiming before we fire.

I feel like I excel at digesting massive amounts of data and coming up to speed on any topic very quickly--even when there isn't a known source for the data I need.  And then I work through the actual process of how we go about implementing our strategy.  That includes project planning and contingency planning.  That includes short, medium, and long term strategy.

I had one more associated thought.  I need to work in a company that is small enough, or where I am high up enough, so that I can talk with the CEO.  Part of the reason why I could never pull myself away from Journyx was that from day one I always had direct access to Curt.  I don't have to be the final decision maker (although that wouldn't be so bad), but I need to be able to speak to the decision maker directly.  Deep politics and organizational structure would stifle me too much.

Personal career inventory

The Austin Job Seeker's Network is running a series of classes on figuring out who you are and what you will find joy doing as a vocation. I've recently gone through much of this on my own, but decided to take the free class to see what I might have missed.

The first day they gave us a lot of homework. I'm not going to walk you through the steps of the homework. I'm only going to document my results here. They identified 5 high-level categories for self-assessment.

The positive aspects of incompetence

I blogged last night about Washington's stupid policy decision to institute pay cuts for the top paid 25 executives at seven of the companies that received government money.  If you're unsure that this is a horribly bad idea then go read that post first....

Washington didn't think this policy through.  I pointed out that they clearly don't understand the actual consequences of this policy, if it is enacted.  The other thing that they didn't think through is how easy it would be for these companies to get around the policy.  I went to sleep thinking about that last night, and I found so many options for subverting this policy that it's now clear to me that it won't have any real effect at all.

Good list of job hunting sites

This looks to be a fairly comprehensive list of sites where one can search for jobs, with short descriptions of the strengths and weaknesses of each.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2342781,00.asp

I originally found this information here:
http://internsover40.blogspot.com/2009/10/top-20-job-search-web-sites_19.html
I thought it was original there, and linked to it. Turns out that it was basically stolen from the PC Magazine article (they even picked up one typo.) So I unlinked that and linked the PC Magazine article instead. The internet is supposed to be links. Give credit where it is due. Don't steal other people's hard work.

I was thinking of researching this myself when I ran across this list and checked that off of my to-do list. Now I have researched this myself, and I will be posting a broader list shortly. And I will link the PC Magazine article and give them credit for their work.

Not afraid any more

I'm not looking for a job any more.  That particular search is over.  All of the soul searching led me to examine what I really want and need.  While a steady paycheck is clearly desirable, and I might have to get a job to make ends meet at some point, my heart and life are not there.

This is going to take a while to explain.  And I don't yet have all of those words.  So consider this a teaser preview:

I'm going to spend my time praying, reading, thinking, writing, and talking.  I'm going to write both fiction and non-fiction.  The fiction won't be empty pot-boilers, it will be pointed and focused teaching of truth through stories.  The non-fiction will be honest and true, but may cover any topic.  The talking may just be more blog videos, or it might evolve into genuine paid speaking engagements.

I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to earn money and pay the bills.  I see some hints of where the money might come from.  Let's just say for now that I have faith that money will be taken care of.

The most important point here is that I am no longer afraid.  I'm no longer afraid of my own voice.  I'm no longer afraid of speaking up and being judged.  I'm no longer afraid of failing.

No, I haven't told Christy yet.  But I'm not afraid of her any more, either.

Overview of the job search process

(This is a conversation for the Austin Job Seeker's Network LinkedIn group.  I just had more to say than would fit in one of the LinkedIn comment fields.)

Greetings all,

I was laid off just over two weeks ago.  I'm just finishing up dealing with the mechanics of getting laid off and transitioning my family and life into this new phase.  And I am just barely getting started with the preparations of the job search.

I think that many of the people who follow behind us on this path would greatly benefit from an outline and practical advice for dealing with the first two weeks, specifically, and then with an overview of the rest of the process.  I've written out my notes below.  Would you spend a minute to add your suggestions in the comments?

Hopefully you and I will be working full time soon, and so someone who follows behind us will take this to the next stage and clean it up, etc.

If you have suggestions then please reference the step #.  Like, "In step 6 I would suggest that you add _______."  Or, "I think that step 17 needs to come much earlier, like maybe before step 6."

_____________________

Overview of the job search process

I'm sorry for you that you are having to go through this.  There are lots of good people who have gone through it before you and left behind some good resources.  You will get through this.  Please take the time to help others while you are here.  Share your experiences and ideas with those who are travelling here at the same time as you.  And consider spending a little time improving these resources for the people who come behind you.

The job I am looking for

I worked through the free-writing exercises.  I ended up where I was afraid I would be.  In human terms, my dream job is entirely unattainable.  I have a plan B job outlined, where I think I could find some joy and some success.  But my heart will not be there.  Democracy 2.0 is all about Justice, Equality, and Peace.  That is where my heart is.

My dream job is:
* I get to work on Democracy 2.0-like projects, making tangible improvements to large groups of people's lives through policy, philosophy, and legal changes.
* I get to live my faith out loud, speaking boldly about God's vision of people helping people, non-violence, and forgiveness.  This includes proclamation to the Church, to get them involved, and apologetics to the unchurched, to earn trust and open doors.
* I get to work with a diverse group of Justice-loving people of various gifts.

I can't even figure out a title for a position like this.  Maybe a researcher at a think-tank.  Maybe a policy researcher staffer on a political campaign (there are only a few that would allow me the religious freedom I crave.)  Hernando de Soto's Institute for Liberty and Democracy would be perfect, except for the religion issue.  I haven't been able to find anyone doing this in the name of God that I could join.  Does any church have a full-time staff position for Minister of Social Justice?  Would they hire someone who didn't finish his M. Div.?

James called this an "ambassador from the poor to the rich".  Yeah, it's something like that.

I just can't see any way to get there.  I can't get there.

God, to the best I can see this is where you are going and what you are doing.  Please let me join you there.  I believe this is what you made me to do.


Plan B: What I know how to do looks like this:
* I interview clients and prospects, research competitors and complementary products, and document the business and technical requirements for a product.
* I document (or work with a documentation team) to detail the business processes that interact with the product.
* I work with developers and testers to ensure that the delivered product meets the documented requirements.
* I communicate design decisions and status to amy and all stake holders--clients, board, salespeople, etc.

The title for a position like this would be Product Marketing Manager, or Product Manager.  Or it could be a Sales Engineer or Solution Designer in a company that sold highly customized solutions.

The Power of the Poor

Hernando de Soto is one of my heroes.  If you haven't read 'The Other Path' then you should stop now and go do that.  I'm still working on my decision of what I would like to do with my life, but working with his Institute for Liberty and Democracy is definitely near the top of the list. 'The Other Path' and 'The Mystery of Capitalism' were two of the formative books that began my work on Democracy 2.0.

De Soto has a new documentary called 'The Power of the Poor' that is going to air soon on PBS.  Here is the trailer:


De Soto's website says that the show is supposed to premiere on October 8 at 10 Eastern.   Here in Austin, our first viewing will be KLRU on October 20 at 10 PM.

De Soto's website has an essay contest going.  The question is:  “What institutions can enable the world’s poor to realize their power and achieve prosperity?” This is my answer (and entry in the essay contest):

---

“What institutions can enable the world’s poor to realize their power and achieve prosperity?”

There are thousands of poor communities throughout the world. Each has its own culture and causes for it's current situation. There is no one path that every poor community can follow to prosperity. The following guidelines must be custom fit to each situation.

The 'get my next job' plan

Current status: 10/6/09 @ 11 pm -- I researched the 10 behavioral questions a little bit.  I figured out that I needed to pick either plan A or plan B before I could pick 10 questions to answer.  So that is on hold.  Instead of that I read '48 Days to the Work You Love' by Dan Miller.  Great book.  That is going to take a while to digest--not 48 days, but some time.  I'll blog the key points of the book for me, tomorrow.  I'm also still going to ask everyone to help me with the branding exercise, tomorrow.  Everything else is on hold while I digest that book, I think.
_____________________________

This is the plan.  If you really want to understand the 'whys' behind the plan you will need to take Ken Kuznia's class 'Land the Job You Want'.

I've reordered the steps because his steps were in presentation order, not execution order.  I'm also omitting the critical 'shift your paradigm' step because I don't want to steal Ken's thunder, and because I've already done it.  When he said it I slapped my forehead and instantly saw that he was completely right.  My paradigm is thus now shifted, so I'm skipping that step in the plan below.  As I said, if you are interested then take the class.

One more note for the readers.  There is no step for 'finding out if the company is hiring'.  That is intentional.  I'm sure that I will send my resume to some companies that have publicized positions.  If you have a lead that fits my skills, please let me know and I will definitely check it out.  But my action plan is focused on finding opportunities that are not yet posted, and applying while I am the only person being considered.  (Take Ken's class for the explanation.)

1. Create an action plan (this blog post)
I'm planning in public.  That includes commitment dates and status updates (coming later).
This is now done (see below.)