IT: Common Sense is a Plus

I read with amusement the following article - Households face the unthinkable: budgeting. Drew Curtis of Fark.com has it pretty much clocked when he talks about news positioning the patently obvious as though it is revolutionary.

It's also interesting to note how many people are getting back to basics in their careers and personal life. For example, Steven Covey has made a pile of cash telling us what we already knew in "The 7 Habits..." series. We all intrinsically know that we need certain things to be successful - rest, resources, basic time management, etc. Guys like Covey kind of remind us of that and help us see the benefits to getting back to those basics.

Thus, what's really needed is not another self-help series to tell us the benefit of X, Y or Z (I'm waiting for the "Breathing! It's Good For You!" series) but rather we need to feel more confident in asking for what we need to be successful. In other words - we instinctively value common sense but we're afraid to trust it. We need a panel of researchers from Gallup or USA Today to provide an in-depth study on why it's okay to ask for what we need.

It works the same way in IT. The more experienced you are with troubleshooting or systems admin or project management or engineering, you build an internal knowledge base that helps you arrive at conclusions much faster than an inexperienced person might. Of course this doesn't give license to 'use the Force' - IT is like Algebra: check your work. But don't run from what you have learned from experience. Sometimes you will be troubleshooting an issue and it feels like a network card problem - you can smell it. Don't ignore your instinct - follow it and get used to using it. It will help you.