80/20 Across the Board

by Tina Darmohray
<[email protected]>

Tina Darmohray, editor of SAGE News & Features, is a consultant in the area of Internet firewalls and network connections, and frequently gives tutorials on those subjects. She was a founding member of SAGE.

It's April as I write this for the June ;login: deadline. I've just finished reading my February issue. Several authors talked about their New Year's resolutions (the deadline for the February issue is in December). Reading their articles made me think about my own priorities.

I was reminded that it was this week last year, while writing my ;login: column, that I found out about the unexpected passing of a co-worker and good friend of mine. She was only 54, not old by anyone's standards, and increasingly younger as I march through my own birthdays.

Those close to me can tell you that losing her really threw me for a loop ­ partially because I expected to be able to continue our friendship that I enjoyed so much and, probably, because it hardly felt "fair" that she was gone at 54. She very much still had a "list" of things she intended to do; she wasn't nearly done living. She was a co-worker I found depth in. She was great to work with on a technical basis, but what drew me closer to her was her perspective on life. She had a "hard work" ethic, but she also advocated balance in everyone's life and practiced it in her own. She always encouraged me to seek high standards in work and balance in life.

In my last article I discussed my 80/20 principle in measuring job fit. Last April I made a personal decision to take the same 80/20 rule and apply it across all my commitments. (Frankly, I have made that decision on numerous occasions, but last April I made it more earnestly, and I've stuck with it better than ever before.) It's just a simple extension of what I outlined last time; the difference is you apply the same methodology across all your time, not just 9 to 5. Remember the equation: for every project you take on, ask yourself if 80% of what it requires to do the job are things you want to be doing. If it doesn't meet that criterion, don't say "yes" to the commitment.

In my case, I made the resolution to give nonwork opportunities a more equal weight with those ever-demanding work-related tasks. Now when someone asks me to take on a new project at work, I consider how that fits into my long-term goals, both in my career and in my life, and how it would affect the way I spend my collective time. Once you get the hang of it, the 80/20 question is easy to remember to ask yourself, and it helps you make decisions that balance your time in a way that you'll be happy with in the long run.

The hard part, of course, is sticking to it. I'm convinced it's at least as difficult as any ill-fated diet! If you're like me, your interests far outweigh your time and resources. It's almost dangerous for me to read the newspaper; I always learn about a worthy cause or an exotic destination. It seems I'm in perpetual-shopping mode on the aisles of life, and it looks so wonderful I want to try it all!

But life doesn't work that way, and last April was a harsh reminder of that for me. We don't get an infinite number of years to try everything we'd like to. So I decided to work a little less and live a little more, if I could.

Of course, nothing is perfect. There are fire drills in everyone's life: crises you don't plan for, opportunities you can't pass up, digressions that turn into full-fledged projects. But asking yourself the 80/20 question in all aspects of your life can help you plan your time so you don't miss out. I think it's worth a try.

One of the problems with having a board full of sysadmins is that we are all used to our problem-filled, interrupt-driven workdays, where we just elbow others out of the way, go in and fix what's broken, then jump on to the next problem. Teamwork is not one of our most common characteristics or requirements. When seven such people try to work together, some days are a little rougher than we'd like. Agreeing on goals, let alone working in concert to achieve them, is difficult.

For the last couple of years the USENIX Board has tolerated our growing pains on the SAGE Board by assigning one of their own as a liaison and by staying "out of harm's way." To their credit, they've given SAGE tremendous freedom and support, allowing us to accomplish things we just couldn't have done otherwise. To their even greater credit, they assigned Eric Allman as their liaison.

When we got off track, Eric gently pushed us back on. If that didn't work, he pushed harder. When we didn't seem to be working together, he stepped in and pointed it out. When necessary, he did so in strong enough terms that we would stop and reassess our approach.

When things were clicking along, Eric was along for the ride. His contributions to our discussions were always on-point, disinterested bystander observations where appropriate, USENIX Board representative when asked.

Those who know Eric are not going to be surprised at these comments, nor when I say that he was never afraid to speak his mind in, or out of, our meetings. He was also first in line to ensure that the SAGE Board had the authority and room to make our own decisions. That's a very fine line to walk, but he did so admirably.

We all know Eric Allman for his technical accomplishments. As he now steps aside from the USENIX Board, and thus the role as liaison to the SAGE Board, let me add that his organizational talents and people skills are also top notch. Without your assistance, Eric, we would not be anywhere close to as far along as we are.

Thank you, on behalf of all of SAGE.

I find myself in an interesting situation: building a help desk de novo. This includes everything from staffing, to identifying the right technology, to developing work processes, to renovating office space. As work on the project begins, I think back to my experience as a client of numerous help desks and wonder whether a successful help desk exists.

The challenges are numerous. First, how can a help desk be structured so it is efficient? Users, and I'm no exception, always seem to want immediate attention. They want to speak with someone now! As a result, they pick up the telephone, which means that someone must be there to answer the call. People costs are the single most expensive aspect of any business. A one-to-one ratio of help desk staff to callers can be extremely inefficient. Influencing behavior so users feel as comfortable sending an email message as they do phoning could allow the help desk staff to do some multitasking, thereby increasing efficiency. Can this be done? How?

Second, how can the work be made more rewarding and less stressful? Let's face it, help desk staff, like sysadmins, tend to hear from people when there are problems. Facing endless hours of problem reports or questions that could have been easily answered by the book on the shelf is draining on even the best of us. What's the right mix of time on the help desk and time for other projects?

Many users complain about the low-quality service they get from help desks. There is incredible demand for competent help desks. Intel recently announced an answer center that will answer questions about any manufacturer's computer. Is it possible to deliver high-quality service, manage the operation efficiently, and retain staff? I'd entertain any thoughts you may have via email.