It's Not How Well the Dog Dances

a blog by hewbrocca

  • About

Connect

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Get hewbrocca in your inbox

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Copyright © 2019 Hugh Brock

Goals

6 January, 2020

I blew up my Trello board yesterday. I think this is a good thing — I realized, when I took a good look at it, that the “long term goals” I had on there were really merely ways to categorize (and therefore justify) the work I was already doing.

(I love Trello as a way to organize work, for the record — I just don’t like the way I have been using it.)

The problem with writing down goals is that it’s risky. You might achieve them, and then what? In fact I wrote a whole essay about this back in 1984 when I was applying to college. Hilariously, the essay achieved its goal of getting me into college, even though it was about not being pleased with another goal I had set myself and then achieved.

I’m not also totally sure I’m happy I got into college, but I guess it was better than the alternative…

The other funny thing I have noticed about things like goals and convictions and so on is that they are like time capsules. If you write them down and then look away for long enough, they provide an interesting look into your own thinking at some point in the past. This happens to me all the time because naturally once I write down a goal or my convictions about something I never look at it again seriously for the next two years. I think that’s part of the deal, right?

Filed Under: Work

Not Having A Car

6 April, 2019

We checked out a Zipcar and drove it to Jamestown RI on Thursday to visit the in-process refit of Confetti, my father-in-law Ron’s boat. Beautiful weather, lovely day for a drive, and I find I actually enjoy driving more than I used to mostly because I never do it I think.

On the way back Friday morning, I found myself reflecting on how easy the whole process has become. If I decide I need a car for some reason, I can reserve one within two or three hours of needing it. I walk up to the car with my special card, the car reads the card, lets me in, and off I go with it. I have no idea why the big car rental companies haven’t adopted the same model, honestly — why do I need 15-30 minutes of human interaction for something that is apparently possible with a few clicks on a website?

It’s true that Zipcar is expensive — we spent $100 for the privilege of taking this car to Rhode Island overnight and returning it the next morning. Compared with the actual cost of owning, insuring, and parking a car in Boston, however, it’s a serious bargain. And that doesn’t factor in the time and worry that come along with owning something (you may own things, but they also own you).

I guess our recent decision to rent rather than buy in Boston is based on the same logic. I like being unencumbered, even though in America it is costlier than owning a place. (This is not true for example in Europe, where there is no subsidy to the home-building industry in the form of a mortgage interest tax deduction, and as a result many more people rent.) I wonder if one day renting an apartment will be as easy as checking out a Zipcar? Will the differences between a hotel and an apartment and a house continue to blur?

Now that I think of it, we’re going through the same thing in our Boston office at Red Hat right now. We’ve been blessed with strong growth there, which means that we are outgrowing our current space, and that means that some of us — managers like me, in particular, who spend much of their time on the phone anyway — will switch to “mobile desks.” This doesn’t mean the desk is actually mobile, which is too bad because that would be hilarious. (Especially if motorized… imagine managers wheeling around the office while talking on the phone…) What it means is that there are decent well equipped desks available in the office that no one can “own.” You just walk up to the thing and use it, and leave it clean when you’re done. I’m actually looking forward to this because it will mean I can’t pile useless junk on my desk.

I guess what all of this leads me to is, isn’t it interesting that I am moving into a world where there are fewer and fewer barriers to me moving around as much as I like, wherever I like? And what exactly is it that is making that possible or comfortable or desirable even? Is it that I have a strong network of “neighbors” that I do neighborly things with, online? Is it just that transaction management is so much easier in a computerized world?

What I find even more interesting is that the moment all this is happening is the same moment we find reactionary forces trying to rebuild the old walls around “nations” and “cultures.” I wonder if there is a measurable difference in car ownership rates, between folks who want more walls, and folks like me who want fewer?

Filed Under: Boston, Cars, Boats, Airplanes, Work

No Points For Busy

1 April, 2019

I have become a regular reader of Seth Godin’s blog, partly just because he actually posts something every day and partly because some of those things are truly awesome.

Yesterday’s entry falls in the latter category. You can read it there but the gist is:

Points for successful prioritization. Points for efficiency and productivity. Points for doing work that matters.

No points for busy.

I need to do a better job of remembering this…

Filed Under: Influencing Nerds, Work

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 10
  • Next Page »

Meet Hugh

I'm the Research Director for Red Hat, married to harpist and writer Kimberly Rowe, living in Boston. We lived in Brno, Czechia until pretty recently. Read More…

Read About

  • Boston (24)
  • Brno (6)
  • BVI (16)
  • Camden (4)
  • Cars, Boats, Airplanes (17)
  • Coffee (6)
  • Family (3)
  • Influencing Nerds (11)
  • Language (1)
    • German (1)
  • Music (13)
  • Other Stuff (12)
  • Rowing (5)
  • Uncategorized (1)
  • Work (30)
  • Yoga (2)

Recent Posts

Vaccination And Air Travel

6 April, 2021 By Hugh Brock Leave a Comment

Because 4 Moves In 3 Years Wasn’t Enough

5 April, 2021 By Hugh Brock 1 Comment

Camden Harbor

11 February, 2021 By Hugh Brock Leave a Comment

My new view

2 July, 2020 By Hugh Brock Leave a Comment

Some Delicious Coffee

7 January, 2020 By Hugh Brock Leave a Comment