Part 2 of Professional Development: What Would You Tell Your 16-Year-Old Self?

A couple of weeks ago, Karen posted Professional Development: What Would You Tell Your 16-Year-Old Self?  There was a lot of discussion about it on Twitter and I’ve been meaning to write up a post about my 16-Year-Old self ever since then.  It would appear though that they’ve finally come out and said that time-travel is impossible so I’ll never get to go back and say these things to myself.  I also had trouble finding a pic of me at 16, but I did find the one above of me at 18.

While Karen focused on the purely professional advice she’d give to herself, I’m going to wander a bit more than that and hit the highlights on a few more topics than she did.

1. The end of high school or university is not the end.  Remember that you always need to be learning new things.  You don’t necessarily have to take formal classes, but there will always be new things to learn.
2. You can’t rely on others to look after your career and your training.  You are the one that is in control of your life.  Don’t ever forget it.
3. Working for a living is not the same as living for work.  And you don’t have to work 40 hours a week for someone else to make a living.
4. Learn how to say No.  As you work through the early years in your career you need to make sure that you only take on what you can handle and that it’s okay to say ‘No’.  Somewhere you grew up with this idea that you can’t say ‘No’, but think about it.  You are the one that can judge whether you can handle something or not.  You may not know this now, but even your own Father learned to say no to certain jobs he didn’t want to do. And that’s okay.
5. Speaking of our Father…watch how he does those mechanical and household repairs.  Sooner or later you’re going to own a house and you’ll need to know those things.  But just remember, you’ll never be able to drywall, tape, mud and sand as well as he can.
6. You’ll never, ever regret those two years of typing class you just had.
7. You know that Space Shuttle that just launched? Keep watching those because in 30 years it will have it’s last flight.
8. Take time to enjoy life as it comes and don’t let work get in the way.  And when Karen (oh yeah, you’re going to marry a wonderful woman named Karen) goes to Germany, Amsterdam, New Zealand and … (heck, I can’t even list them all), don’t say you can’t go with her because you have to work.
9. Never forget to have fun.  When it stops being fun, stop doing it.
10. Oh, and one last thing…that company called “Apple” that just started publicly selling shares last year…buy some.

Videos of the Endeavour Shuttle Launch – by Barbie #NASATweetup

For fun I thought I’d share two of the videos that I filmed while visiting the Kennedy Space Center as part of the NASATweetup to view the launch of Endeavour.

The first is of the retraction of the Rotating Service Structure (RSS) that surrounds the shuttle while it is being prepared for launch.  This happened about noon on 15 May 2011, the day before the launch.  We tweet up-ers were taken by buses courtesy of the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Visitor Complex to just outside Pad 39A where Endeavour activities were finishing up prior the launch.  I took a screen shot of Google Maps on my phone to show the location near where we viewed the retraction.

I was able to get a bazillion pictures, as the retraction takes about 30 minutes. We all stood there in the Florida sunshine, watching people do their work while the RSS slowly rotated away from the orbiter.

In addition to using real cameras, I also gave Video Girl Barbie a chance to do her own filming with her embedded video camera.  Her camera produces low quality recordings, but I find what she does produce to be of decent quality.  First up is the retraction video taken on 15 May just outside Pad 39A.

For some more context, this is my photo of Endeavour.  That’s how close we where.

The next morning we arrived at KSC just after 3AM.  It was especially nice to see the orbiter all lit up.  We definitely weren’t as close this time, but being 3.1 miles away meant that we were the closest non-staff viewers of the launch.

Video Girl did a great job filming the launch.  You may want to crank up your speakers to get the full effect of the rumbling launch sound.

I have a bunch of pictures to share, and a few draft blog posts hanging around that you’ll see over the next few weeks.  I’ll try to spread them out a bit so that you aren’t inundated with all my #spacebrain content all at once.

All Things Considered, Science is Emotional #NASATweetup

KSC Countdown Clock

 

I haven’t blogged yet about my NASA Tweetup experiences, for the most part because I’m worried about coming across as too emotional about the entire experience.  As I previously posted, I’m attending a special NASA program that brings 150 Twitter users from around the world to Kennedy Space Center to watch the launch of the Shuttle Endeavour on her last mission, STS-134.   I started this post hoping to keep it as a short overview.  It’s not.     

Pre-Tweetup – Level Green

The launch was originally scheduled for mid-April, then that was moved to 29 April due to a traffic jam in space.  No worries. I arrived here in Florida on 26 April.  Wednesday I picked up my credentials and then went over to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to add to my space brain, the term I’ve been using for being inundated with science about space exploration. I also met up with my house mates of Venus House for the first time.       

Thursday – Level Orange

Thursday we headed over to Kennedy Space Center (KSC) to get settled in the Tweetup Tent (affectionately referred to as the twent).  I new we were going to be close to the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building, but I had no idea we’d be parking right next to it. That was just awe-inspiring.  There we met our fellow Tweetup attendees.  We started with the obligatory “everybody introduce yourselves, tell us where you are from and something interesting about you”.  Crap.  Interesting? Okay, I’ll say that I’m a…well, let’s wait to see what everyone else says.  I was sitting on the far end, near the air conditioners.  They started on the other side.  As people stood up to say who they were I sat there stunned by the number of accomplishments and backgrounds.   Quick…what the hell can I say that is interesting? Somehow “I like data” just didn’t seem to be that interesting with this group.  Attendees came from all walks of life: 3 -time Jeopardy champion, Internet company founders, Twitter staff, rocket scientists, TV and film stars, musicians, pilots, journalists…well, you can read what most said about themselves at http://nasatweet.com/wiki/STS134_Fun_facts …but I think that most people were a bit too humble about their interesting things.     So I finally settled on “I’m a former national spokesperson for Women in IT. I help encourage girls to take more science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)”  That seemed to go over well, with this crowd being STEM friendly.  I mentioned that I had brought the technical Barbies with me to enjoy the launch, too.  I was already starting to have the overwhelming feeling that this Tweetup was going to be something like I’ve never experienced before.  Emotions were at Alert Level Orange by that point.            

Kennedy Space Center VAB

 

We did a tour of the KSC property, including the inside of the VAB.  There we got to see Atlantis being prepped for her last voyage soon after Endeavour’s trip.  Did I tell you we got to go inside? That’s insane.  There aren’t normal tours for going inside the VAB.   I guess to other people it’s just where they work.  For me it was just amazing.  I need to find another word.  Someone find me a thesaurus.    

Thursday was a full program of speakers from NASA, including astronauts and staff.  More on that later.  We were supposed to go out near the pad to watch the retraction, but freaky storm weather cancelled that.  My first disappointment.  Emotions still at Level Orange, but barely.             

Friday – Level Red

The Saddest Right Turn...

 

 On Friday we headed back over to KSC ready to experience an opportunity of a lifetime — to see the launch from just over 3 miles away. To put this in perspective, if you were 400 yards from the launch the heat and flame would kill you.  If you were 800 yards from the launch, the sound would kill you.  So 3 miles is close.  It’s as close as non-workers can get. Emotion Levels were Reddish Orange, sort of like a tequila sunrise. I set up my tripod to reserve a space.  Right next to a tripod from an international camera crew.  My tripod looked sad next to theirs, but it was setup and ready to go.  More exciting program inside the twent happened, and I’ll post pictures of that in a later post.    

Every presenter over the two days spoke of the emotion and the feeling of awe of what they did for a living.  It was all about STEM, but overall the most blow-me-away thoughts were about humanity, peace, the meaning of life, and…emotions.   As each person spoke, I could see the passion they had about the work they did;  they were changing the world and they loved every minute of it.         

Sadly, as Rob blogged, the launch was scrubbed about noon on Friday due to a mechanical failure.  We were terribly disappointed, but all of us understood that safety first is the key phrase.  We watched the Astronaut Van drive slowly past, it made an unexpected turn into the VAB drive.  We were hoping that it was just making a special drive by of the special observation area, but it wasn’t to be.  I was interviewed by NPR’s All Things Considered about this disappointment.  I found out that interview made it to the air because people all over the US started tweeting that they heard me on their drives home from work.  How wonderful is that?   

I have to say that seeing that Astro Van take a turn when it wasn’t supposed to was heartbreaking.  It wasn’t a crushing blow because I was by then riding a full RED ALERT emotionally already.  I had experienced so many amazing things up to then it didn’t matter.  The launch would happen when Endeavour was ready for it to happen.              

Later in the afternoon President Obama arrived, even though the launch had been scrubbed, to meet the astronauts and their families.  We were able to wave to him as he waved back at us, a bunch of Twitter Space-crazed photographers.              

NASA Tweeps get Engaged at the Countdown Clock

 

And then there was more: NASA Tweetup attendee Chris Cardinal proposed to attendee Nina Tallman, right in front of the Countdown Clock.  As a fellow geek, that was so amazing to see.   My emotions were now just going crazy.  I took a bazillion pictures.         

Most of us stayed in the twent, listening to ad hoc program presentations, chatting about everything that had been happening so far, and talking about making extended travel arrangements.   We looked forward to a launch in the next 48 hours.  All was fine. 

Saturday – SQLSaturday

When the scrub was announced, Kendal van Dyke (twitter and another former NASATweetup attendee) reminded me there was a SQLSaturday happening in Jacksonville.  I caught a ride with him and two other great SQL community members Bradley Ball (twitter) and Dan Taylor( twitter).  So I got to spend time with the rocking SQL Community at the last minute.  What a great opportunity. For the ride back we were all really tired and we had great gut-busting laughs, the kind that are hilarious if you are tired, entirely stoked from being with a great community and punchy from getting only a couple of hours of sleep.  Thanks, guys, for taking care of me and the Technical Barbies.  Oh, and for letting me be part of your SQLRoadtrip.      

Now – Back to Tequila Red Orange

I have many photos and blog posts to share and am struggling with how to not overly spam this blog with them. I have lots of potential blog posts that talk about data, project management, decisions, and costs, benefits and risks.  But my main concern is that I’m still GUSHING with emotions and I don’t think my posts will come across as anything but completely insane.  I’ve been struggling with this post, trying not to fill it with #FTW #AWESOMESAUCE #ZOMG and 10,000 exclamation points.  Did I tell you have pictures?        

I so wish I could have taken every single girl that I talk to about taking more science, technology, math and engineering along with me to see an hear just how freaking rewarding STEM careers are.  I’d show them how these careers change the world and make lives better.  I’d show them the fabulous role models, how much fun they have, and how being in a community of insanely smart people can make every minute count.  

As I am putting the finishing touches on this, NASA just announced that the current date (more about that coming, too) will be pushed back again.  I was doing okay travel-wise because I was already planning on being in Orlando for SQLRally on this Saturday.  Staying over a few extra days was cheaper and easier, so that’s what I’m doing.  As of right now, it will be later and not 10 May as last announced.  You know what? I’m still at EMOTION LEVEL RED…ish.  All things considered.        

Making The Hard Decisions On A Project–Lessons From NASA

Image by nasa hq photo via Flickr

A Right Turn Instead Of A Left Turn

Some time ago, Karen and I put our names in to attend the #NASATweetup scheduled for the last launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-134).  Karen was chosen and went down last week and had a fabulous experience, but with less than 3 hours to go until the launch it got scrubbed.  Throughout that morning they had already worked on a problem with a regulator and had made up for lost time caused by a storm the previous day and it all looked good for a launch.  I was watching the tweets and through NASA TV saw the astronauts in the Astro Van heading to the launch pad when they turned right to go back instead of left and we found out the launch was scrubbed.  As of right now, a new launch date has not been set as they work on the problem and determine when the next eligible target launch date can be.

But We’re Going To Disappoint All These People

The launch delay got me thinking about how decisions like that get made especially so close to the deadline and how we could apply this thinking to our own projects.  Think about it, the President was on his way, there were numerous dignitaries, 150 #NASATweetup attendees, and an estimated 700,000 others there to watch this historic launch of the last shuttle flight of Endeavour.  Can you imagine having to be the one that has to say “not today”?  Have you ever been on a project when the executives are there saying “Let’s just go ahead and implement it and we’ll fix it later”?

Your Decision Making Process Is Key And Must Be In Writing

While most of us don’t deal with projects with the same risk factors as NASA does we still have to deal with problems and risk, but how we deal with it is key.  As Karen detailed in her post #NASATweetup – It’s a GO! Readiness Reviews and Your Projects this all works when you have everything documented beforehand and you have a formal process for this.  In essence, you have algorithms and decision trees that you follow that make sure that you make the right choice and don’t let human emotion and behaviour get in the way.  Don’t get me wrong, this was not an immediate decision and I’m sure it was not an easy decision.  But if you have all of your options and decision trees, policies and procedures mapped out ahead of time then the decision is based on those written policies and not subject to human emotion.

In the announcement of the delay Shuttle Launch Director, Mike Leinbach, stated:

Today, the orbiter is not ready to fly…we will not fly before we’re ready.

This was not a decision taken lightly, but after thoroughly  evaluating the problem and determining if it could be fixed prior to launch or if it was more serious.  But with such a short time to launch they had to make a firm decision, so they did.  In my mind, this takes a lot of integrity and strength to be able to stand up and say that they can’t launch.

WWND

So the next time you have a problem on one of your projects think about this: WWND – What Would NASA Do?  Better yet, when you start a project, write down all the possible scenarios, risks and decisions and a have a formal process so you can follow it when you need to.

On my Way to #NASATweetup – The Schedule

Image by lug00ber via Flickr

Yes, it’s time for me to start heading to Orlando, FL, then over to Cocoa Beach to pick up the keys to the condo where 3 wonderfully smart ladies and I will be staying as part of the NASA Tweetup.   It seems like I waited forever for this time to arrive.  I put the sign, courtesy of Carson Skinner (blog | Twitter) there on my office door to let Rob and Other Rob (my assistant) know that I was away.  Just in case they didn’t remember.

Right now the launch is scheduled for Friday, 29 April at 15:47.  I’m leaving tomorrow to ensure that I have sufficient padding in my schedule to give the airlines plenty of time to get me there for Wednesday.  One of the great things about working remotely is that I can work from anywhere, at least for short periods of time.

On Wednesday, I’ll stop by the Kennedy Space Center to pick up my information packet and to get my NASA Tweetup Badge.  My housemates will be arriving on Wednesday throughout the day.  Have I told you that I have an amazing group of women to share this experience with?  Sue (Texas)  works in the space industry, Liz (Minnesota) is a science blogger, TV personality and mom and Sheilah (Ontario) is a children’s librarian.  Up until a few weeks ago we’d never met and now we are rooming together and heading off to share a once in a life time experience watching the last flight of the Endeavour space shuttle.

Thursday we will make our way to the Kennedy Space Center for the first day of tours and information.  In the morning we’ll get to meet NASA Team members Stephanie Shierholz and John Yembrick who make all this Tweetup magic happen.  Next we will get a demonstration of the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) and Mark III spacesuits, then lunch in the NASA cafeteria.

Around noon NASA TV will start for the official part of the program:

· Dana M. Hutcherson, space shuttle Endeavour’s flow director, , Kennedy Space Center

· Tara Ruttley, International Space Station associate program scientist, NASA’s Johnson Space Center, @ISS_research

· Astronaut Clay Anderson, @Astro_Clay, Expedition 15 flight engineer, STS-131 mission specialist, shuttle Discovery (April 5-20, 2010)

After that, we’ll board a bus for a tour of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, including visits to the Apollo Saturn V Center, a drive by the Shuttle Landing Facility, Mate-Demate Device, Orbiter Processing Facility, Vehicle Assembly Building and Mobile Launcher Platforms, and viewing of the retraction of the Rotating Service Structure, scheduled for 7 p.m.

I think that sounds like a wonderful day.  More posts about Friday, the main event (I’m hoping).

#NASATweetup – It’s a GO! Readiness Reviews and Your Projects

Image via Wikipedia

I’ve been tweeting a lot about NASA, the shuttle program, and space anniversaries lately because I’m attending the NASA Tweetup on 28-29 April.  I can’t tell you how exciting I am about attending, especially after the 10-day delay we experienced earlier in the month.  The delay was due to the Russian mission to the International Space Station (ISS) causing a traffic jam in space, so the Endeavour Shuttle launch was delayed.

Even though the delay was announced well before today, we didn’t know until just now that the date is a go because today was the Flight Readiness Review, where experts do a complete system risk assessment of all the systems and dependencies for Endeavour and the Space Station.

The Flight Readiness Review is a type of design and operations review that ensures that everyone and everything is ready for launch.

• More debris tile to provide more debris protection in more locations
• Systems on board the Space System needed to be checked because Endeavour will be doing maintenance on the Space Station
• Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) being installed on the ISS requires checking
• ET-122, the External Tank, was struck during Hurricane Katrina and needed extra inspection. It is 10 years old and does not have all the improvements that newer tanks have.

If all the systems, people, software, facilities, and other components check out, the launch is scheduled.  So today, the official go ahead was given for the scheduled date.

All of this makes me think of larger application production rollouts.  I’ve been part of many readiness reviews, both formal and informal.  However, this usually with my methodologist or project manager hat on, not very often with a data architect hat.  I have a feeling that this is because the normal issues I would raise as a data architect (missing requirements, incorrectly implemented requirements, etc.) would be dealt with much earlier in the process, such as during a normal development quality control test.

Where problems usually arise late in the production cycle are when someone incorrectly sets data, not data structures incorrectly.  In even the most dysfunctional shops, most organizations have come to understand that allowing people to make ungoverned structural changes is a huge risk.  However, I have not seen nearly enough of the type of controls and monitoring for reference and master data, especially things like reason codes, reference codes (Customer type, Product type, etc.)

What I can appreciate about NASA’s Flight Readiness Reviews:

1. Documented.  Everyone knows ahead of time what their job is, what is expected, what the quality standards are.  They agree to it up front. There are manuals, checklists and checklists of checklists.
2. Expected.  No cowboy engineer thinks that he can make a quick change just before the launch and force the change to be accepted because it’s too late to undo it or too late to miss the date.  No one says "we don’t have time for the FRR.  Just put ‘er into production".
3. Formal. The review is scheduled.  It has assigned tasks.  Everyone, even external parties, know that it is coming and understand the role it plays.  There’s a press conference for the results.  There are probably even signatures.
4. Open. As far as I can tell, the results of each check is shared openly.  Even the "fixes".  The results are published.  Media can ask questions and the live results were tweeted throughout the day.
5. Reflective.  The review concentrates on failures, damages, problems and issues of previous flights.  These issues aren’t swept under the rug in hopes they don’t happen again.
6. Risk-based.  There are issues documented.  They are assessed against risk and probably cost.  Time is of the essence, but it isn’t the only discussion.  Risk is inherent in the space program. Understanding it and mitigating it is the name of the game.  Avoiding all risk would mean no space program

Of course, the reason NASA has such a strong governance process for shuttle flights is because lives are at risk, as well as a huge pile of money.  This doesn’t mean that our own application systems can’t do harm.  I tweet regularly about data breaches, customers who are harmed financially and businesses that are lost due to poor data policies.  Often these failures are due to poor governance. 

Even if you project does not have a formal readiness review you can have your own personal process.  I have many checklists and tests I run on data models and scripts I generate.  These are my own readiness reviews. I share them with team members. There’s a reason why NASA has readiness reviews and there are important reason why you should, too.

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