No Longer Haunted By The Question

Vague title right? Jason Alba at JibberJobber used an old post, "A Question That Haunts Me Wherever I Go", to make some points today about being able to communicate what you do, and who you are. At the time I wrote that post, I really was struggling with an identity, and an ego. "You should know me!" I exclaimed. Wow was I wrong. It was all my fault, and I finally solved the problem.

Elevator pitches are hard to construct, and most people pitch the wrong thing. I'm probably doing the wrong thing in a few eyes, but here is what I finally came up with and it seems to have been working pretty well.

When someone asks me what I do, or who I am , or you know, wants to know what my expertise is, I give them three words "I'm a coder." Not vague, and it does something very important for me. If you're not interested in coders or coding, you say cool and move on. However, it's been my experience that those three words lead to a broader discussion, even if it's short-lived. Usually, the next question is, what is a coder or what do you code? See, now I have the chance to give the person a little more information, and I might be able to frame my answer based on my location, or who is asking the question.

I don't need to sell you on a company or a service if our time is short. I can hand over a business card or tell them to Google my name, Thom Allen, Thom with an H, and say let's chat if you have any coding needs. My website gives them more than enough information. Hopefully I can get their card or name, and now we can start a networking relationship, or better yet, a business relationship.

I've tried the 30 second elevator pitch: "I do this and that, or this and that, and I can do this or that." Some elevator pitches actually derail the opportunity to do business with someone. If your pitch doesn't contain something they are interested in, they just say cool and move on. Lost opportunity.

Again, I'm not claiming this to be perfect, or that it would work for anyone else. All I know is it works for me, I'm not painted into a corner, and I don't feel the need to inundate the person asking with TMI, too much information.

Picture from Robert

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Your Doing It All Wrong - How to Carve a Turkey

I don't think I let my turkey stand long enough to be able to carve my turkey the way this guy does.

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New Metallica Song: Lords of Summer

I'm not sold on the St. Anger style Metallica has adopted, not sure if it's easier on aging bones, but its not like Metallica of old. Oh well, this is a new song, which isn't really new, but I just stumbled across it today.

Take a few minutes and watch.

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30-day Geek Challenge: Your Geek Inspiration

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Progress And Update On Cancer Fight

Hello everyone, I wanted to give an update on my cancer and treatment. Most importantly, I want to thank everyone for their support. I remain amazed and humbled, and despite the up and down nature of fighting cancer, leaning on my family and friends help me get through each day.

At the moment I'm finishing up my firth round of chemo, with an additional treatment next week. After that, we will do what is called a PET CT scan which looks throughout my body to see if the cancer has spread, and if the tumor has shrunk. Basically we want to see if the chemo treatments are working.

The next steps after the scan are two more rounds of intravenous chemo, then a long stint of direct tumor radiation therapy and oral chemo.

All of this is dependent on my blood. Chemo kills blood cells, and because of that the blood is unable to produce things like blood platelets. Several times during treatment I've had low white blood cells and low platelets, both of which prevent chemo treatment, and puts off my schedule.

We're fighting hard. My faith is strong, my attitude is still positive, and I'm dedicated to doing what ever it takes to stay on track and win this fight. Again I want to thank everyone for their continued support, thoughts and prayers. These gifts don't go unnoticed and touch me deeply.

And one final thought, if you wonder what I do all day, here is a small look. Most of the time I spend staying up to date with what's happening in the tech field, I want to stay fresh and sharp so when I go back to work I can give the same amount of help as I have in the past. I also spend time helping my family get to places they need to go, usually watching a grand child, which of course is a joy. I've also been doing some genealogy, and if I could get Scott Olsen to give me some direction, I'd be taking way more photos than I have been.

I also exercise when possible, read (my kindle is over flowing), and listen to music. I've burnt through Netflix and am always looking for more shows to watch. I've played Xbox thanks to my team supplying the best game on the planet, NASCAR, which I've gotten some good play time with.

Gina and I try to spend as much time together as possible. It's important for us to remain connected, true with each other, and supportive. Going through this isn't easy. I want to be able to share what is really going on with me, how I feel, every little pain and stress. And I also want to know what is going on with her, how she feels, and give her the support she needs as she faces this battle with me. She has been so supportive, my rock. My kids, my extended family, have all been there to support me. I love them all.

I also want to thank Bob, John and Clint for checking in on me nearly every day, and for coming over, it's nice to see your faces. If any of you want to come visit, just let me know, I'd love the company.

I guess all in all I just try to stay busy. Keep my mind sharp, brain educated, and soul nourished. Keep sending good thoughts my way, I can feel it, believe me.

Signing off for now.

Picture provided by James Wheeler

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