Geek and Wrangle your way out of Bitching
All jobs in the World are some combination of three basic jobs.: geekery, wrangling and bitching. Actually, there is only one job: geeking and wrangling your way out of bitching.
Geekery
All jobs require domain knowledge. It does not only apply to computing. It applies to building, opera singing and housework. In each case, particular knowledge is required to do the job properly. Which kinds of fastenings work best with particular materials. The historical and cultural context of a song. The cleaning product that is most effective for each surface. And why.
Wrangling
Domain knowledge doesn’t make things happen. Engaging and organising people, resources, and yourself, does. Managing materials, staff and contractors. Getting to the front of the stage and relating with the audience. Vacuuming without unplugging the vacuum cleaner. Wrangling is mainly learned though experience.
Bitching
Bitching requires neither technical knowledge or leadership. You do it so that geeks and wranglers don’t have to.
Roles at OnlineGroups.Net
We are typical. Michael is Geek and I’m Wrangler. We both do plenty of each other’s job, and a fair bit of bitching, but we specialise. Alice recently joined us to do ’support’ (you can’t write ‘bitching’ in a job ad). But her job is really to geek and wrangle herself out of bitching. No-one likes doing it, you don’t learn much and it’s not worth much. But if you systemise and automate enough, there’s hardly any to do. Our strategy is to sell high value services, systemise them and sell lots, and then give them away, growing new people up through those layers.