Debster's Delights
Thursday Mar 15, 2007
The Sunny side of Work and Life
Welcome to the Debster's blog. Blogging is like public speaking without theinitial audience rush and immediate feedback. The true and tried remedy, to "picture
everyone in their underwear", doesn't carry quite the same consolation, because
in blogland, that's a highly plausible scenario. However, just like those
pioneers before me, who were hesitant to add to their workload and were a bit
apprehensive about publishing their thoughts for others digestion, I forge ahead with
my bloglets. May you find them, interesting, funny, reflective...ah, the heck with
that...may you just FIND them.
The buzz of the wind in my ears, as I whiz down the road on my Performance
bicycle, gets me to thinking about how decadent it feels to take that
one hour during the day, no email, no cell phone, just the road, the tires,
and my thoughts. Similar to the balance required to pedal at high speeds, down
the hill on a tire that is no thicker than your ring finger, so is the balance
required to balance work and life.
I, however, am one of the lucky ones. I work for Sun Microsystems. I'm sure
you've heard the buzz about us. We were, as some analysts and financial
consultants might have told you, once down and out, kaput, all but left for gone,
like a disgarded bicycle tire tube on the side of the road. But in America, the underdog
coming back to win is one story we love to tell and for Sun we live to tell.
Thanks to Jonathan taking the helm and sharing his office with Mike Lehman,
known for his conservatism. Tie that to the innovative products and there is no
question as to why our stock is rising. Did you know that IDC rated Sun as the
#1 volume distributor of Unix Units this Quarter...yes, "WE'RE DEFINITELY BACK!!!"
Lucky....The primary reason I feel among the privileged at Sun is that I
have had the fortune of participating in the Openwork Program for the last five years.
This program has allowed me to balance work demands, fulfill my career ambitions,
and take care of my family. In the nineties, we called this quality of life. Now,
as living proof of the sandwich generation, I call it a necessity of life.
Life in the day of an OpenWorker...me!
Get up in the morning at 5am, work for two and a half hours before hugging my
children good morning and starting their day with a hearty breakfast, some giggles
at the table and a lunch I know will fuel them. I whip up something in the
crockpot and saunter downstairs to assist my mother with her shoes and braces and
then load the kids in the car to drop them at school and am back online long
before California has begun it's day. I work diligently all day until the
stomach growls and it takes only moments to walk to the cafeteria (my kitchen),
get a delicious lunch of my choice, and no lines! I'm back at my desk in 20 minutes.
Reviewing my schedule, I see I can squeeze 45 minutes in to ride my bike in the
afternoon (wrote my first blog upon a bicycle seat riding down 63rd street).
My kids arrive home at 4pm and I get a hug while on our portofolio meeting.
They run out to play while I finish up at 6:30pm and put dinner on the table.
Kids to be and many nights I am back on by 9:00 to meet with China or tie
up loose ends.
I have complete quiet to concentrate and all the tools to link to DTcal and
the other applications I require. I vist the office 1-2 times/week to build relationships,
run video conferences and check-in. And it's not only my effectiveness. Studies have
shown that employers get on average, an addition 6 hours/week from those folks
who work from home and money is saved on realestate, utilities and infrastructure
support.
BEWARE though, working from home is not for everyone. For those who
- cannot shut the door and leave along with it the ringing phone, stresses,
and challenges of the work day.
- have neighbors which drop by regularly for an early happy hour, after all, it's
12pm somewhere!
- think of the words "self-motivation" as a book title in the self help section of
the bookstore instead an implied verb.
- do not have a wireless headset, the conference calling feature, accessline or teledesk
Bottom line: Next to the deposit Sun makes in my bank account on a regular basis,
OpenWork is by far one of the most valuable benefits that Sun offers me. Then you
add in, the opportunities, excitement, and quality of folks I work with.....
It's pretty dang sunny from where I sit, here in my home office, at Sun.
Bring some sunshine into your worklife, and join me here at Sun.
Posted at 02:59PM Mar 15, 2007 by debster in Sun | Comments[5]