I owe a lot of thank yous…

The time between jobs is a great one for introspection–I’m pulling together portfolios and resumes and really thinking about my skills and next steps. What’s come home to me more than anything else, though, are the number of people that contributed (or in some cases made) my professional skills. It’s about time I thanked them, so here goes (and this is going to be LOOONG list):

Nancy Ferris: Former managing editor of Government Computer News and former city desk editor for the Washington Star, she’s one of the sharpest, toughest editors I ever worked with, and she literally taught me my business. Her ethics remain, as ever, unquestionable, and probably every one of my employees since Nancy has heard (ad nauseum) my story about pneumonia, a difficult deadline, and the blank front page.

Vanessa Jo Grimm: At the time GCN’s news editor, she taught me to look at my writing in a whole new way. She patiently listened to my complaints that she always changed my headlines, then said, “well, if they weren’t so boring I wouldn’t have to change them, would I?” Then we sat down and dissected the “interest” part of interesting writing. I don’t know if she ever realized how much influence she had, or how many of my subsequent awards for excellence in writing and editing were due to that one talk.

Susan Menke: Susan was the first person who ever laughed at my humorous writing and became my best “funny” gauge–if I could make her laugh until tears when she edited my column, I succeeded. She also taught me a lot about fierce professional loyalty and ethics, and remains a good friend.

Trudy Walsh: Copy chief at GCN, she taught me the value of playing with words. I’d always done it, but the games we had between us–hidden meanings in my columns, the time the Oxford English Dictionary credited me with inventing a word (after all those times she accused me of that and I denied it), taught me to see the beauty and power of the English language.

Tom Temin: Tom probably doesn’t realize it, but he taught me one of the most valuable lessons I’ve ever learned about using words to influence: reader affinity. When he first took over as GCN EIC, he gave me a great lecture about knowing, identifying with, and writing for your reader. I took it to heart, and it’s made it sooooo much easier for me when writing any kind of pitch.

Sean Gallagher: Great writer and editor, absolutely so disorganized he could make you scream, but somehow he always pulls it out brilliantly. He taught me not to take the whole thing too seriously, and to trust that things will work out.

Mark Schlack: My boss at BYTE, and a friend and colleague for many years now. He gave me my dream job–editor at BYTE–and I saw him maintain his ethics, sense of humor, and loyalty in some difficult situations. A gracious, unpretentious man. He also taught me a great deal about running a publication well (and working with difficult art directors…

Rick Vizachero: He and Nancy pushed and pushed to get me my first journalism job, for which I’ll always be grateful. When one of my first computer reviews was unfavorably received by the manufacturer (people lost their jobs when I said the computer was “flimsy”) Rick taught me to remember where the blame belonged.

Bob Green: One of the old school cowboy reporters, Bob taught me how to investigate and report a story, and was the driving force behind several awards for investigative reporting.

Jonathan Blackwood: Genial, intelligent, cultured, and charming Southern gentleman who’s also a hell of a reviewer. Was the first to accept me at WinMag and really made me feel welcome and able to state my opinions now that I’d reached the “big time.”

Martin Heller: Feisty technologist and self-acknowledged genius who taught me how to hold my own with feisty technologists and self-acknowledged geniuses.

Jim Powell: More than anyone else, taught me about work ethics and making deadlines in the face of great difficulties. One of the most graceful and practical writers and editors I’ve ever worked with, and a highly valued friend since our WinMag days.

Joel Patz: Skilled editor and business strategist who taught me a lot about office politics and working with difficult people in sticky situations (not that I probably learned some of that all that well). Also taught me to see the fun side of what we’re doing, and to stop taking myself so seriously. Another valued friend.

John Montgomery: Someone once said that “John’s so brilliant he sucks the air right out of the room when he opens his mouth” and they were right. Intense, brilliant, right where he belongs at Microsoft…he taught me to understand what I want (and what I don’t want) in a career.

Russ Kay: Another great writer, and one of the kindest gentlemen I’ve ever met. I don’t think Russ knows how to say anything bad about anyone–he meets nastiness with gentleness, and it’s a very effective weapon. Russ taught me to see the good in people even when I wasn’t sure there was any.

Peter Brasket: My boss at techies.com, Peter taught me how to negotiate business deals and deal with vendors who’d failed (sometimes miserably) without going postal. One of the best salesmen I’ve ever worked with, Peter also taught me how to find and use peoples’ hidden motivations to achieve our goals.

Doug Berg: I’d love to bounce into every assignment with as much enthusiasm and joy as Doug–he was a great reminder about how exciting technology and all this jobstuff can be whenever I felt myself faltering during difficult times.

Shu Lee: Great statistician and mathematician, who taught me the beauty and danger of working with large piles of data (or rather, making them work for you).

Bert Cave: Highly ethical technologist at Intel who gave me the freedom to do what I thought was right, and would accept my word for anything…as long as I had the data to back it up. Taught me a lot about self-discipline and supporting intuition with information.

Steve Allen: Whilst (inside joke) working with Steve, I learned about making the Intel system work–not an easy task–and tried to emulate Steve’s ability to make difficult people do things they didn’t want to with a modicum of grace. Don’t think I always did that, but he set a great example.

Doug Busch: Literally one of the princes of the high tech industry–highly ethical, sensitive, great motivator, and skilled technologist. One of the people at Intel I most admire, and someone I’d cheerfully follow into Hell if he mentioned that it was a “BKM.” His ability to inspire that kind of loyalty, come to think of it, is actually kinda scary.

Sandra Fitzgerald Shoemaker: A born cheerleader, she taught me the value of tenacity and showed me how far ethics can go in keeping you honest when you hate your current assignment but your integrity won’t let you fail. One of the women at Intel that I most admire.

Jayne May: Jayne’s taught me the value of rising above personal difficulties to do what needs to be done, and to boldly enter into a new field for the fun of it. She went from 0 to 60 in an unfamiliar field faster than anyone I’ve ever met, and made it look easy.

Heidi Kampf: With her voice she should be in radio, but she’s (fortunately for Intel) managing a chunk of the IT@Intel program in Europe. No-nonsense woman with a knack for getting things done when others have failed–she’s taught me a lot during our midnight soul-searchings.

Joe Doolittle: Skilled technologist with a heart of gold. Also a camera buff (which makes him fun) and someone with a good sense of the business of technology. He taught me not to take Intel so seriously.

Nathan Zeldes: Nathan is one of the most intelligent men I’ve ever met, and one that personifies “good.” I don’t think it occurs to him that others are capable of selfish behaviors, because he appears to be incapable of it himself. He’s taught me a bit about trusting the motives of other people (even though I don’t always remember that lesson).

David Sward: David’s tight focus on data integrity and telling the truth with numbers reinforced my own beliefs in that area, and his unfailing good humor in stressful situations helped innumerable times. I’ve learned a great deal from him about understanding the true business value of a decision, and I consider him a good friend.

Sigal Louchheim: Long, long conversations about everything from the psychology of Web visitors to the origins of war in the middle East. I learn just by listening to her…and her point of view always makes me think again and again. A good friend.

Jan Webber: Jan’s the woman I’d love to be when I grow up. Organized, able to tease out the essence of the problem and get right to the heart of the solution, honest as the day is long (or longer), and unafraid to speak up when it’s time to voice a potentially unpopular PoV. Also caring, generous, and graceful in the face of disappointment. She’s taught me a lot about being a business woman as well as a business man, and that friendship can transcend business disagreements.

Ron Miller: Ron showed me that good business sense can have a heart as well as a head, and he knows how to transcend the barriers of business relationships to become a good friend as well.

Molly Olson: Molly probably doesn’t remember it, but my first encounter with her showed me some of the best of Intel–confronted with an issue that fell outside of Intel’s rigidly standard practices, she had the presence of mind and the heart to step outside the box, identify a better solution, and go for it. She taught me that you can fight bureaucracy at Intel and win. (Maybe not often, but hey—)

Janet Gluck: If you could give a computer a great big heart, that might be Janet. So absolutely organized, bottom-line oriented and clear-seeing that she’s scary…but also one of the most fun people I met at Intel. Truly enjoyed working with her and learned some great efficiency aids at the same time.

Ilene Aginsky: You can’t beat Ilene for bouncy, bubbly enthusiasm..but it’s tempered with great practicality and common sense. She embodies the “do or die” philosophy that I admire so much, plus she makes it look fun.

Shelley Wagner: Don’t know her all that well but came to greatly respect her abilities and her conscientious tenacity. Where so many at Intel settle for mediocrity, she continually pushed to improve her already-excellent performance. Caring, warmhearted and knowledgeable…had we worked together longer I would have learned a LOT more, I think.

Rick Brogan: Rick made one of the best volte-face overhauls to his workstyles that I’ve ever seen–he listened to what his boss wanted, assessed the best way to make changes, and simply did it. I’ve never seen anyone take a message to heart so thoroughly and effectively…and I greatly admire him for that.

And then there’s my family, Mom, Dad, my sisters and brothers in law, and my extended family, who’ve of course taught me about doing the right thing in the right way and sticking to your guns and a whole lot more.

If I’ve left your name off this list, it isn’t intentional–the more I write this the more I realize how many, many thanks I’ve left unsaid, and I’ll probably add more as I think of it.

Thanks, everyone.

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