A Survival Guide for the Traveling Techie

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Title page

• Copyright

• Dedication

• Table of Contents

• Foreword
  • {0.1} WHO NEEDS THIS BOOK?
  • {0.2} WHY THIS BOOK
  • {0.3} HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

• Acknowledgments

• Chapter 1: Traveling
  • {1.1} ROAD RULES
  • {1.2} WHEREVER YOU GO, THERE YOU ARE
  • {1.3} PLANNING
    • {1.3.1} The Planning Timeline
    • {1.3.2} Allow Time For the Probable Bad Case Scenarios
    • {1.3.3} Focus on the Best Case Scenario
    • {1.3.4} Gather Information Before You Go
    • {1.3.5} Sales Calls and Other Customer Visits
    • {1.3.6} Predictability and Communication
  • {1.4} WOMEN AND FLYING
    • {1.4.1} Air
    • {1.4.2} Water
  • {1.5} PACKING
    • {1.5.1} Luggage
    • {1.5.2} How To Pack
    • {1.5.3} What To Pack
  • {1.6} TIME PRESSURE
    • {1.6.1} Theory of Delays
    • {1.6.2} Packing Quickly
    • {1.6.3} Driving Quickly
    • {1.6.4} Walking Quickly
    • {1.6.5} Dining Quickly
    • {1.6.6} Reassessing Goals
    • {1.6.7} Preserving Slack
  • {1.7} CRITICAL POINTS
  • {1.8} NAVIGATION
    • {1.8.1} Become a Map Fanatic
    • {1.8.2} Become a Geography Fanatic
    • {1.8.3} Navigational Hazards
    • {1.8.4} Mnemonics
    • {1.8.5} Rehearse the Route if You Can
    • {1.8.6} A Note On Hawaii and Other Locales With Foreign Language Street Names
  • {1.9} THE BIG EVENT
    • {1.9.1} Continue to Preserve Slack
    • {1.9.2} Teamwork
    • {1.9.3} Neatness Counts
    • {1.9.4} Get the Most from the Event
    • {1.9.5} Whatever It Takes
  • {1.10} PSY/OPS
    • {1.10.1} Be Where You Are
    • {1.10.2} Good Deeds
    • {1.10.3} Appreciate Beauty
    • {1.10.4} A Change Is As Good As a Rest
    • {1.10.5} The Fine Art of the Microvacation
    • {1.10.6} The Tandem Business/Vacation Trip
    • {1.10.7} The Value of Literature When You Are Stranded
  • {1.11} AFTER YOU GET BACK
    • {1.11.1} Brush Your Horse, Tend To Your Gear
    • {1.11.2} Follow Up
    • {1.11.3} Learn from Failures
    • {1.11.4} Savor the Victories

• Chapter 2: Tech
  • {2.1} NO USER SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE
  • {2.2} THE VARIETIES OF TECHNICAL EXPERIENCE
  • {2.3} LET'S GET TECHNICAL
    • {2.3.1} This Isn't Rocket Science
  • {2.4} THE PERSONALITY OF THE TECHIE
  • {2.5} SUPERLEARNING
    • {2.5.1} Get To The Bottom of Things
    • {2.5.2} Develop Your Technical Reading Skills
    • {2.5.3} Write Your Own Documentation
    • {2.5.4} Practice Makes Perfect
    • {2.5.5} Memory Improvement
  • {2.6} SEEK HIGH-QUALITY INFORMATION SOURCES
    • {2.6.1} Who needs to know?
    • {2.6.2} Factory vs. field.
    • {2.6.3} Downstream data sources.
    • {2.6.4} Upstream data sources.
    • {2.6.5} Other research tips.
    • {2.6.6} Beware of snob appeal and "dreamspeak."
    • {2.6.7} Beware of shills and covert agendas.
  • {2.7} YOUR NETWORK OF EXPERTS
  • {2.8} IMPROVE YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF 'META'
  • {2.9} DEVELOP YOUR INTUITION
  • {2.10} THE ART OF TROUBLE SHOOTING AND DEBUGGING
  • {2.11} KNOWING WHAT'S EASY AND WHAT'S HARD
    • {2.11.1} What's easy:
    • {2.11.2} What's hard:
  • {2.12} USING PRO TOOLS
  • {2.13} SOLVING THE RIGHT PROBLEM
  • {2.14} TIME MANAGEMENT
    • {2.14.1} Motivation
    • {2.14.2} Distractions
    • {2.14.3} The Power of Goals
    • {2.14.4} Organization
    • {2.14.5} Multitasking
    • {2.14.6} Interruptions
    • {2.14.7} Resting
    • {2.14.8} Procrastination
    • {2.14.9} Anticipation
  • {2.15} RISK MANAGEMENT
    • {2.15.1} Maximize Slack
    • {2.15.2} Isolate Research From Production
    • {2.15.3} Simulate and Rehearse
    • {2.15.4} Make Extra Copies
    • {2.15.5} Slow Down For Hazards
    • {2.15.6} Stay Cynical
    • {2.15.7} Resist the Urge to Hurl Yourself Into the Abyss
  • {2.16} WHEN IT PAYS TO PLAY
  • {2.17} SHOPPING FOR TECHNOLOGY
  • {2.18} WATCH THAT 'TUDE, DUDE
  • {2.19} GIVE SOMETHING BACK
  • {2.20} AN ETHICAL FRAMEWORK FOR TECHNOLOGY
    • {2.20.1} Computers For the People
    • {2.20.2} Creating Value
    • {2.20.3} The Case for Progress
  • {2.21} HISTORICAL ROOTS

• Chapter 3: Survival
  • {3.1} SELLING
    • {3.1.1} Everyone Is In Sales
    • {3.1.2} Dealing With Customers
    • {3.1.3} Sales 101
    • {3.1.4} Dealing With Sales People
    • {3.1.5} What It Means To Be a Sales-Oriented Techie
  • {3.2} UNDERSTANDING PEOPLE
    • {3.2.1} The Institutions of Psychology — "Follow the Money"
    • {3.2.2} The "Meta-Model" of NLP
    • {3.2.3} Categories of People
    • {3.2.4} What Motivates People
    • {3.2.5} The Importance of Character
  • {3.3} YOUR PROFESSIONAL PRESENCE
    • {3.3.1} Your Body
    • {3.3.2} Accouterments for Grooming and Health
    • {3.3.3} Your Clothes and Accessories
    • {3.3.4} Your Car
    • {3.3.5} Your Presentation
  • {3.4} CAREER STRATEGY
    • {3.4.1} Make Sure You Give a Hoot
    • {3.4.2} Make Sure You're Soaring With Eagles
    • {3.4.3} Make Sure You're Competing
    • {3.4.4} Be Realistic About How Indispensable You Are
    • {3.4.5} The Secret of Hustle
    • {3.4.6} The Secret of Mojo
    • {3.4.7} The Secret of Self-Improvement
    • {3.4.8} The Secret of Technical Retraining
    • {3.4.9} Know Where You Fit
    • {3.4.10} Invest In Your Personal Network
    • {3.4.11} Plan Your Career Trajectory
  • {3.5} PREDICTING THE FUTURE
    • {3.5.1} Study the Present
    • {3.5.2} Study the Past
    • {3.5.3} Study the Future in People's Imaginations

• Afterword

• Appendix A: Collected Links

• Appendix B: Collected Checklists

• Appendix C: My Career Trajectory

• About the Cover

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