Time Management for System Administrators

by Limoncelli, Thomas A.

• ISBN13: 9780596007836
• ISBN10: 0596007833
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-11-01
• Publisher: Oreilly & Associates Inc

Summary

Time is a precious commodity, especially if you're a system administrator. No other job pulls people in so many directions at once. The pressure is on you to produce and it only increases with time. What do you do? The answer is time management. And not just any time management theory - you want Time Management for System Administrators, to be exact. With keen insights into the challenges you face as a sys admin, bestselling author Thomas Limoncelli has put together a collection of tips and techniques that will help you cultivate the time management skills you need to flourish as a system administrator. What's more, the book doesn't confine itself to just the work environment, either. It also offers tips on how to apply these time management tools to your social life. It's the first step to a more productive, happier you.

Author Biography

Thomas Limoncelli is a world-famous author and speaker on many topics including system administration, networking, and security. A system administrator since 1988, he now speaks at conferences around the world on topics ranging from firewall security to time management. He has worked for Cibernet, Dean For America, Lumeta, Bell Labs / Lucent, AT&T and Mentor Graphics. Along with Christine Hogan he is co-author of the book "The Practice of System and Network Administration" from Addison-Wesley. He holds a B.A. in C.S. from Drew University, Madison, New Jersey, USA. He publishes a blog on www.EverythingSysadmin.com

Table of Contents

Foreword	ix
Preface	xiii
1. Time Management Principles	1	(11)
What's So Difficult About Time Management?	3	(1)
The Principles of Time Management for SAs	4	(5)
It Won't Be Easy	9	(1)
Summary	9	(3)
2. Focus Versus Interruptions	12	(20)
The Focused Brain	13	(2)
An Environment to Encourage Focus	15	(6)
Interruptions	21	(1)
Directing Interruptions Away from You	21	(2)
You Can Say "Go Away" Without Being a Jerk	23	(6)
Summary	29	(3)
3. Routines	32	(16)
Sample Routines	33	(11)
How to Develop Your Own Routines	44	(2)
Deleting Old Routines	46	(1)
Summary	47	(1)
4. The Cycle System	48	(10)
Don't Trust Your Brain	49	(2)
Why Other Systems Fail	51	(2)
Systems That Succeed	53	(1)
The Cycle	53	(3)
Summary	56	(2)
5. The Cycle System: To Do Lists and Schedules	58	(22)
A Sample Day	59	(14)
Other Tips	73	(1)
Setting Up a PAA for Use with The Cycle	74	(1)
Setting Up a PDA for Use with The Cycle	75	(3)
Summary	78	(2)
6. The Cycle System: Calendar Management	80	(12)
How to Use Your Calendar	81	(3)
One Calendar for Business and Social Life	84	(1)
Repeating Tasks	85	(2)
Know Your Personal Rhythms	87	(1)
Know Your Company's Rhythms	88	(2)
Summary	90	(2)
7. The Cycle System: Life Goals	92	(9)
The Secret Trick	94	(1)
Setting Goals	95	(2)
Planning Your Next Steps	97	(1)
Schedule the Steps	98	(1)
Revisit Your Goals Regularly	99	(1)
Summary	100	(1)
8. Prioritization	101	(14)
Prioritizing Your To Do Lists	101	(6)
Project Priorities	107	(2)
Requests from Your Boss	109	(5)
Summary	114	(1)
9. Stress Management	115	(9)
Overload and Conflicting Directions	116	(2)
Vacation Time	118	(3)
Yoga, Meditation, and Massage	121	(2)
Summary	123	(1)
10. Email Management	124	(9)
Managing Your Email	124	(6)
Jump Starting the Process	130	(2)
Summary	132	(1)
11. Eliminating Time Wasters	133	(12)
What Is a Time Waster?	133	(1)
Avoiding the Tempting Time Wasters	134	(1)
Common Time Wasters	135	(2)
Wasteful Meetings	137	(6)
Strategic Versus Tactical	143	(1)
Summary	144	(1)
12. Documentation	145	(12)
Document What Matters to You	146	(6)
Wiki Technology	152	(3)
Summary	155	(2)
13. Automation	157	(34)
What to Automate?	158	(2)
How to Automate	160	(3)
Simple Things Done Often	163	(11)
Hard Things Done Once	174	(13)
Letting Others Do Privileged Operations	187	(2)
Summary	189	(2)
Epilogue	191	(4)
Index	195