Rothacker Reviews

If You Can't Run With The Big Dogs Don't Read Seth Godin's Book Linchpin

This is about my Web site The Technician Shop, its roots, undercover espionage personal branding and the Linchpin.

Seth describes a linchpin as a person who is indispensable - someone who cannot be replaced. In terms of technicians, a linchpin would be the technician who is so valuable to his employer, he cannot easily be replaced.

Seth contrasts the linchpin to the factory worker, and this classification includes white collar workers and those in the service industry. Factory workers show up, work hard, listen to the boss, do what their told, be a part of the system and for the most part leave their brains at the door as they punch in for work.

I've worked closely with technicians for twenty-five years. The passionate technician, who cares about his family, personal development, coworkers, education, work, tools and customers, who diagnoses and repairs technically complicated systems while calming the nerves of irate customers and educating them along the way, has always been a fascination point for me. His or her work is pure art.

I had been in a position to influence technicians and direct them toward the linchpin role. Because in my mind I could so clearly see what it took for a technician to become indispensable, I decided to write a book about it. The title was to be No Porches: If you can't run with the big dogs stay on the porch.That was in 2004. A new job and a new city quickly took the wind from my sails.

Fast forward to early 2009. After losing my job I decided to resurrect the No Porches project. I fired up a Web site to work through my thoughts and called it The Technician Shop. Tom Peter's The Brand Called You, Fast Company article and the concept of personal branding were my primary sources of influence. 

I avoid using terminology like personal branding and other corporate gobbldy-gook because to the technician it's excessive noise - hence the undercover espionage personal branding tactic. After reading Seth's book I realize that it will be mandatory reading to any technician interested in professional development. It is the very essence of what I am trying to convey.

I could recommend that technicians read Linchpin and totally shelve my effort except for one thing (person) - their manager. 99% of the managers in the profession are factory managers. Of this percentage, 10% wouldn't be except for their managers or company owners. These managers and owners are higher level factory managers.

There is a direct correlation to a manager's control. The more he tries to control his coworker, the less likely that coworker will ever become a true linchpin. The other problem is that managers are trying to go in so many different directions at the same time, they do not have the ability to recognize a true linchpin or one in the making.

Although I do not use Linchpin terminology, a primary concern in my message is for the technician to find an employer who recognizes and accepts the value of a linchpin. Because these companies are so rare, my focus is for the technician to take control of their own development, education and work and make themselves well, indispensable. 

Due to the whole fibromyalgia thing I haven't been working on The Technician Shop. I guess I was just so excited about Seth's book and how it ties so well into what I was trying to accomplish at The Technician Shop, I had to blab it out here.

Cynicism and Success

My manager is a moe-ron. Why else would someone agree to be a human fire hydrant every single day? His manager, the crew, staff and customers circle the hydrant, all jockeying for a clear shot.

The people who I work with are moe-rons. They punch in, punch their minds out and hang on by their fingernails to the day's end. They could care less about the company and customers. They care even less about themselves. Professional development? Huh, that's about a pro ball player going from the minors to the bigs. It has nothing to do with them.

The people who own this company are moe-rons. There's no connection between them and their employees. Reality has left the house. Customers? Oh yeah, they buy our stuff. The owners treat them like farm animals - give em some feed and box up the milk and eggs.

This guy sure has a distorted point of view, doesn't he? A cynical sot, isn't he. Sure not like us, is he?

He was me. He was so tired of the passion-less, focused-less, caring-less business world around him that he sank to cynicism. In the beginning he thought Dilbert was for losers. In the end he worshiped Dilbert. The system and the drones who ran it and those who trudged through it wore him down. His inability to escape from it brought illness to his body.

You Can't Touch Him

Some say he lives on the edge. One more step and he would leave the world of conventionalism, the world of status-quo, the world of 9 to 5, which in reality is 6 to 6. But although he does live in this world, his heart and mind do not. As the great poet MC Hammer once said, "you can't touch this!"

Oh but they do try. With mind-numbing policies designed to break the will and spirit of his and the other middle managers along with his company's general inability to attract and keep hungry and passionate coworkers, they try to penetrate his psyche, strangle desire and render hope useless. 

By light of his coworker's eyes and body movement, they have succeeded. Knowledge and decision work have been reduced to placing a widget in the next box as it comes down the belt. 6 to 6 robots and it takes 6 drinks after 6 to uncover their humanness.

But not him...

He places them, his company, in a tiny compartment and labels the door fuel. Their mindless mission and its incessant hunger to take other people's money, fuels his life. It fuels his children's education, his new Dodge Challenger and his wife's Beemer, his photography and writing habits and his wife's gym membership. It even fuels the pet's boarding house fees when he takes time off and they go away on vacation.

There is no meaning and fulfillment to be found at work. And that's okay because he isn't looking to find any there. He figures that that's his coworkers' main problem.

There was only one Babe Ruth and it is possible to punch out one's mind and heart at the door as one punches in to work. But the incredible power that it takes to keep the hounds at bay while at the same time sacrificing twelve hours of one's day, twelve hours devoid of meaning and fulfillment, is not worth it.

It is true, the Man cannot touch him. But are those twelve hours worth the price of freedom?

Recently Lost Your Job?

What does a creative person do when they lose their job? Why make lemonade, of course! As I am still experimenting with a concoction that I can live with, you can bet I will take glassfills of inspiration from these guys!

Lemonade Movie Site

Berrett-Koehler: Baby Boomers & Life Transitions

Hey you got a second? Here, get on your knee and place your ear on the ground. Can you feel that vibration? Sure you can, you can almost hear it. You know what that is? It's the Baby Boomer generation coming...on a new trajectory. A couple years back that rumble was on a fast track toward retirement. While they are still on a life-transition course, retirement is no longer at the finish line. And you know what? That might not be a bad thing.

Every time that I visit Berrett-Koehler's (BK) Website, I discover a different nugget of gold. Here are a few words that I extracted out of their identity brochure:

A major theme of our publications is “Opening Up New
Space.” Our books challenge conventional thinking,
introduce new ideas, and foster positive change. Their
common quest is changing the underlying beliefs, mindsets,
institutions, and structures that keep generating
the same cycles of problems, no matter who our leaders
are or what improvement programs we adopt.

Opening Up New Space...how could one possibly cobble together four more pertinent words as to what Baby Boomers need to do on their road to life transitions? If you keep this theme in mind while you peruse BK's categories of Currents, Life and Business, you'll find a world of guidance and direction.

If I wanted a couple of guys to talk about the ins and outs of hitting a baseball, I'd recommend Ted Williams and Babe Ruth. If I wanted a couple of guys to talk about Baby Boomers and life transitions, I'd recommend Richard Bolles and Richard Leider. BK however, has already hooked up with them. Check it out:

Is Management Broken?

Is management broken?  Management author Rosa Say loves this question.  For it implies that what is broken can be fixed.  Can managers learn?  And can they take that knowledge and effect enhanced performance from their coworkers?  Quite frankly, I am not so optimistic.

To be sure, we cannot throw all managers into this soup of incompetence.  Many are not broken.  Many achieve enviable performance from an engaged workforce.  Engaged because coworker's strengths are utilized, two-way communication is in order, expectations are made clear, frequent feedback is given, resources are made available, the whole (mind, body, heart, spirit) coworker recognized, achievements are noted and rewarded and respect is afforded.

Is it possible for the coworker to teach the manager to be a better manager?

Let's ask Ronald McDonald.  Do you suppose that parents buy their kids Happy Meals because of advertising that is directed towards them?  Or do you suppose that parents buy Happy Meals because their kids want them to buy them?

So we can offer managers a myriad of educational opportunities and encourage them to participate.  Most likely the book gets shelved, the DVD gets put away, notes are lost - and it's back to work on Monday.  I really like that new management idea.  And I'll implement it the first moment that I am not so busy.

Bob, I wanna Happy Meal, errrr, Bob, I need to sit down with you and make sure that you and I are on the same page with what you expect from me.

So, can we get managers to buy Happy Meals?  Tune into The Technician Shop and lets give it a try!

The Technician Shop

The Technician Shop is a career, work, education and life resource for technicians.  A technician is a person who works in a residential or commercial setting to repair, replace, maintain or install various things.  From an A/C technician to a window cleaner to a landscaper with a million professions in between.

I created The Technician Shop to help technicians grab hold of their career, work, education and life.  So often I would hear, "my manager doesn't appreciate and recognize me for what I do."  While management should be held accountable for their inadequacies, I must ask, "are you doing everything necessary to be appreciated and recognized?"  Most likely, on this two way street, both parties are at fault.

My message is: Perform your work with passion, care and quality.  Design both a career and educational plan and follow them.  Do it to the point that you can hardly not be appreciated and recognized.  Take care of your health, family and life. 

I'll be reflecting more about this endeavor here at Rothacker Reviews. 

Stop over for a visit and let me know what you think.

Escape From Cubicle Nation

Escape From Cubicle Nation is your personal key to freedom!  Like a weary soul who scraped, clawed and crawled his way across the desert in search of water, I smoked Pamela Slim's most excellent book in search of liberation.  From the tiny molecule in my soul who is standing atop the mountain screaming "no more bosses!" to my entire and collective soul who is getting dry heaves even thinking about Monday mornings, I simply cannot make a more heart felt and direct recommendation: Buy Pam's book today!

Escape From Cubicle Nation is a treasure and as such, I will dip in and review parts of this book with care and reverence.  I will treat it like a fine wine or a seminal Clint Eastwood classic, to be sipped and reveled upon.

Visit Pam's new format at Escape From Cubicle Nation for more info.

Tampa: WFTS ABC Action News

Can you tell when someone is genuine?  Can you tell when they really care?  Do you think a handful of employees can create a positive impression about the company that they work for?  Do you think: When I think about this company, I think about a company that is trying to make a real difference for the people they serve.

A couple of weeks ago along with my wife Rosemary and her mom Mary, I had the privilege of witnessing a live ABC Action News broadcast.  I was so consumed with the reason that we were there and the incredible talent of Deanna Marinello along with the support of her brother Miles and dad Victor, that I almost let a very important story slip by.  But I didn't, thanks to Deiah Riley, Lissette Campos and Wendy Ryan.

A few days later we watched the ABC Action News special Taking Action Against Domestic Violence, hosted by Deiah, Lissette and Wendy.  The grace, dignity and respect in which these three women handled the subject of domestic violence took my breath away.  Rosemary had worked with Lissette in the past on behalf of the All Children's Hospital Tampa Guild and I got to meet Lissette that day in the studio.  So I sent Lissette a note to tell her how I felt about their program.  She mentioned that Joe was also involved.  It was at this precise moment when the collective experience of ABC Action News exploded into a rainbow of meaning, understanding and hospitality!

Back to the story that began to unfold in the studio.  The anchors that day were Dan Shaffer and Deiah Riley, the meteorologist was Stephanie Roberts, Lissette orchestrated Positively Tampa Bay, the cameraman was Tom Gagnier, the teleprompter was Jude Chaison, their boss Charlie Paul and floor director Joe Papadopoulos.  Also in the studio watching the broadcast was a group of kids and their chaperone's from the Canella News Network.

Every single one of the folks from ABC made us feel welcome to be there.  In between working the camera, Tom made sure the on air guests had water and was scrambling around for extra chairs.  During commercials, Joe would talk to everyone (particularly the kids) and let us know what was going on.  This was most impressive as Joe obviously had duties to perform during those commercials.  Following the segment, the crew had a quick debriefing meeting amongst themselves and then held a Q & A session led by Charlie for the kids ( it was open to us as well).  Dan, Deiah, Joe and Charlie graciously and with patience, fielded questions.  The crew was clearly out of time but Charlie fielded one more question from an energetic little guy.  Charlie's kind gesture broadcasted volumes about these folks and their culture.

During the course of events that afternoon in the studio, Miles Marinello leaned over to Rosemary and pointed toward floor director Joe.  He said, "that guy right there is the star of the show!"  I had actually come to the same conclusion on my own.  And when Lissette told me how involved Joe was with the Domestive Violence show, it just all made sense.

But that's not all.  Linda Hurtado and Jackie Calloway were guest judges for the Tampa Bay's Premier Iron Chef Challenge and I had the good fortune to not only meet them but watch them take care of a few business matters (a news report from the event).

Perhaps it is not fair to on air folks.  We can sense that they care and are involved in their stories, but creepy little doubts of, oh they are just acting can whisper into our ears.  I know that not only the on air folks but all of the folks I met from WFTS are genuine.  I know they care.  I know they are hospitable.  And now because of them I have a most favorable and respectful opinion of WFTS ABC Action News in Tampa! 

Do they make a difference to the people who they serve?  They did to Rosemary, Mary, the Marinello's, to me, and they most certainly made a difference to the kids in the studio that day!

Pam Slim: Are You Considering Self-Employment?

Destination: Dave Rothacker, Inc.  Do you need help getting there Dave? 

Uh?  Do the New York Yankees play ball in New York?  Yes I need help!

All righty then, do I have a resource for you, TODAY: Pam Slim

Pam is conducting a free conference call TODAY to help get you started in the right direction.  Do you know when you go to park at a large public event?  There usually are several people who flag you towards a parking space.  This is what Pam is doing today.  And this is her parking space.

Based upon the coaching call that I have already participated in with Pam, the decision to take advantage of her offer is a no-brainer. 

Definition of a guy who gets it: Jonathan Fields.  Jonathan sent out a Tweet a few minutes ago giving everyone a heads up on Pam's call.  For perspective, this is like Wal-Mart sending out an e-mail newsletter announcing K-Mart's Blue Light special.  This is how you do business today folks!  It doesn't get any better than that.