Turn that Boring Task into Consulting Gold

As a SQL Server consultant, every client request you receive is a potential opportunity to separate yourself from the crowd. You should be looking for ways to enrich not only this client but every other client that does or could have the same exact need. Build that SQL, Powershell or SSIS solution in a way that could solve the problem for the next customer.

James, I hear you dude, but I usually it’s all I can do but to keep up with my tickets.

It’s easy to get in that mode where you just want to clear the slate of deliverables and feeling like you’re just staying afloat. Well, if you feel like that now… what miracle of easy times are you waiting for to get it under control?

If you want to streamline you have to find the time.

It’s time build up that SQL super hero utility belt.

I’m not saying look for ways to re-invent the wheel. The best head-start to consulting is having mad Google skills. There are often tons of scripts all over the interwebs that are perfect or near-perfect for that ho-hum task you’ve been assigned. If so, adopt it (and keep those attributions) and no tech manager will hold it against you that had the wherewithal to tuck away a nifty script someone else wrote. That is the start of your script war chest. Guard it well.

But when the task at hand is not quite covered but what you’re finding out on the blogs and forums, it’s time to make a decision:

  1. Do I go beyond the call of duty on this task so that I end up with a re-usable bit of script that will benefit me tomorrow or
  2. Do I go the easy route and just do what I want in order to get er done.

Don’t be your career’s Night Guy:

DON”T BE NIGHT GUY

It’s time to turn boring generic tasks into consulting gold!

Gold

...Turn boring generic tasks into consulting Gold.

Trust me… I’m preaching to myself here too.

There are a ton of reasons to go that extra mile. Enough that I think I’ll save that for a future post. But saving your future self AND your future client time while demonstrating experience and expertise is pretty much self-evident I think

For example… today I had the “easy” task of putting together a manual transaction replication health check similar to what Kendra Little outlines here. But instead of just taking the 2 hour billable only route… I took the scripts I fleshed out and spent the extra 16 hours (so far) to build out a dynamic script builder to solve the same problem at future clients. Did I have to? NO. Will it pay off in the future? Let’s put that to the test.

Are you interested in seeing if my script can help you?

Sign up here to find out when it’s ready for public scrutiny.

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Until next time…

…Be the Primary Key

Yours Truly.

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