Yesterday: Best Day Ever (professionally, that is)

[InigoMontoya]

Been wanting to tell folks but don't want to sound like tooo much of an ass so rather than post to TCF I decided to post here in a more intimate setting.

Yesterday rocked!

Background: As ya'll may be aware, I run a propulsion test facility for the Navy. OK, fine. Well, we had a test come up that... Well... EVERY person who had any meaningful experience with this system for us had retired and/or moved on.

So basically I was left to root through our warehouse looking for equipment I was identifying by archival photographs. Setup? I had some written documents that were written as reminders for those with experience, NOT as primers for one who'd never done it before and again I had archival photographs....

...But with a start like that, one would expect the operation to go poorly, no?


Fast forward a couple months to yesterday.


"That was the smoothest firing I've ever seen."
"You made it look easy."
"I've never seen a firing with no last minute scrambling before."
"That was f'ing beautiful."

Those things (and other similar things) were said by my customers/supervisors.


To top off the day, my softball team won and I went 2 for 2.

[Sue Ann]

You ROCK !!!!!!

[Makita]

Originally Posted by Sue Ann

You ROCKET !!!!!!

FYP, SueAnn.

Cool stuff, Inigo!

[Philosofy]

So, you blew them away?

[nlsinger]

Way to go!

[Agatha]

Originally Posted by InigoMontoya

To top off the day, my softball team won and I went 2 for 2.

OUR softball team won (and I went 2 for 3).

[scooterboy]

That's the kind of day that makes it all worth it, eh?

Congrats!

[BrettStah]

I found top-secret video of the firing!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvBK8...eature=related

[QueenBee]

It's a wonderful thing to have a job you love and be appreciated in it. Congrats.

[Graymalkin]

Dude, you totally rock. They should pay you 10 times as much, cuz you're worth it.

[pgogborn]

Talk about being on the right trajectory. I reckon it was pretty impressive you located kit in a warehouse using archive photos - and from there you went mega stellar. Many congratulations.

(and kudos to Agatha for her part in the softball victory)

[JYoung]

So it blew up in a good way?

[gregor]

[InigoMontoya]

Originally Posted by JYoung

So it blew up in a good way?

Textbook.

Actually, beyond textbook as I took the opportunity to change proceedures and practices up. I had half a dozen different "time saving experiments" going on the side. Saved us probably a man-month worth of labor. 'Seems that many of those same supervisors/customers were afraid that the experiments wouldn't work (but were at least willing to try 'em). All but one worked, and the one that didn't work still worked to an extent that it taught us some things we didn't know before.

[InigoMontoya]

And today I found out the benefit of having a beyond textbook firing....


See, normally after every firing we have a "lessons learned" meeting. In that meeting our screw ups are identified and we then (in the days following) take steps to hopefully ensure that the screw up doesn't happen again. Mind you, there are (almost! ) always screw ups.

This was the first firing in 10 or so years with zero screw ups. Results? Nothing to gig me on. Result? The worst thing they had to say was that the monitor I watch test data on sucks (I know that!).

So today I got a brand new 26" monitor to install on my control panel.

Shiny!

[Mysteryman]

Originally Posted by InigoMontoya

So today I got a brand new 26" monitor to install on my control panel.

Shiny!

So in a meeting designed to reprimand for failures (in a constructive way) they end up rewarding you with new gear.

Where is this bizarro world where everything works and well deserved rewards are handed out without question? Are there any tickets left, I'd really like to join you there.

grats on a job well done!

[Agatha]

Originally Posted by Mysteryman

So in a meeting designed to reprimand for failures (in a constructive way) they end up rewarding you with new gear.

Where is this bizarro world where everything works and well deserved rewards are handed out without question? Are there any tickets left, I'd really like to join you there.

grats on a job well done!

Well, his group IS hiring.....

[jen]

Congrats!

[InigoMontoya]

Oh, and the monitor has a built in DVD player. Can you say movies?

[dobrien]

Having to put it all together without the help of the retirees and old employees tells me you *really* know the principles and fundamentals required. Great stuff.

Congrats!