What leatherworking taught me about ServiceNow

What Leather Working Taught Me About Learning ServiceNow Knowing the LanguageEvery process & craft has a language. Those of us starting in ITSM, learned language of incident, problem, change, problem, CMDB, MTTR, ITIL, etc. In leatherworking I learned of scratching, roughing, tanning, beveling, the saddle stitch, bump jigs, and skiving. The application of our tools to craft is contextualized in unique languages that you must learn. BUT....The Lingo is Not ExpertiseJust knowing the language is not enough to be credible. This is especially true in the ServiceNow process areas. Quality of future implementations depends on learning this at scale. We must not just know the words, but also immerse ourselves in the essence of what the process is for. What outcomes is it meant to achieve. In leatherworking, I knew only the lingo, but not the nuance. Not the outcomes of each step. Here's the my first attempt at cutting, dying, beveling, and stitching a key fob.

... which leads us to....Your First Works Will be UglyAt least in the ServiceNow world, expertise in one part of the platform will have plenty of overlap, but that won't change the fact you don't have enough experience to leverage the tool excellently toward an outcome. You must embrace failure and poor outcomes in the opening stages of your learning. And you must build on your own Private Dev Instance as much as possible, so these "entry level" crafts are isolated from customer environments.Learning & DoingThis *shouldn't* come as a surprise to anyone but at scale the lesson isn't learned. For every question I get about "what to build / review my build / help me build", I get 100 "what should I read"?Look at my 1st keyfob. I built that after watching *at least* 100 hours of Youtube videos.Coursework knowledge does not translate into outcomes at scale. Why might that be?Expertise is Earned By Instruction & NuanceWorking in leather killed my belief that reading or self-certifying would scale expertise. That 1st keyfob (100 hours of Youtube + 6 of crafting) yielded a passable but ugly outcome. What did 1 hour with a master teach me? * ONE* hour.

That's a 10x - 100x improvement in outcomes vs time. The master understands the nuance the apprentice can not see. In my first keyfob all I knew was ... the beveller goes around, the pricking irons make the holes for the thread. The thread goes around. What I missed was the thickness of the leather and what part of the hide it was from, the gauge of my pricking irons, and thickness of thread. The gauge of my beveller and when / if it should have been used. I know not all of us aren't in great financial shape. I know there is risk. But don't kid yourself when it comes to paid ServiceNow courses as a multiplier to your learning *speed*. THE MOST IMPORTANT LESSON FOR BEGINNERSIf you're trying to learn ServiceNow, and you're seeking guidance, don't seek "the steps to learn x"Don't seek "the best things to read". Dare to pour STUPID amounts of hours into building, then ask someone to review it. Dare to pay for the master's instruction. Self teaching is possible, but nobody (except me) is willing to tell you just how slow it is. And in Software, in stark contrast to leathercraft, the failures are NOT visibly obvious. Measure Once (Storing your Knowledge)One thing I've learned from master leathercrafters is the importance of "measure once", and let the power of templates multiply your efficiency. Do you a favor and watch this leatherworking master at work. He has a template that stores his measurements, but using clever bump jigs and other tools, he never has to measure a second time. The lesson to apply is LOG lessons you learn and the code you build. Build a library in whatever medium possible. Optimize later, but for now, just write down everything you're learning in every discipline. If there is any ONE thing I'd do differently stepping 13 years in the past, its this alone. That's all for now - hope there was some useful wisdom in there for you. As always I remain yours truly, The Duke. UPDATE ON HIRED

Hired continues production. If you want to be on the waiting list for the product launch, you can sign up here. Members of the hired waiting list will be receiving regular inside scoops on ServiceNow Jobs. Like this... Today the Duke Network is being asked to find:- ServiceNow Architects of 3 years XP and above- ServiceNow Developers with 2 years and above (with CAD) certs- Implementers of every process area with 2 years and above. GRC, SecOps, APM, ITOM. The Duke Network is representing the following resources:- A PhD holder in cyber security with SecOps cert in ServiceNow. Available on 2 months notice period in the UK.- A ServiceNow expert of over 7 years with deep experience as the sole SN resources at companies he's worked for. Experience in Portal and Asset Management- Several BA / Engagement Manager resources with multiple years experience consulting in ServiceNow world.- A 9 year ServiceNow vet with expertise in ITSM, Domain Separation, Orchestration, and building training programs. If you're interested in any of those positions or resources, please reach out! Want to change how you receive these emails?You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

This email was sent to <> why did I get this? unsubscribe from this list update subscription preferences Robert Fedoruk · 5215 W Winona St · Chicago, IL 60630-2238 · USA