John McCormack DBA

SQL Server Databases and Cloud

Who is John McCormack

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John McCormack profile

John McCormack

Hi. I’m John McCormack and I’ve been working professionally with SQL Server and other data platform technologies since 2012. It has grown into a career that has spanned very high volume and vldb dba work, data engineering, cloud architecture and engineering leadership.

I currently work as an Engineering Manager at Docusign, leading a global DBA team responsible for the data platform underpinning Docusign’s eSign and CLM products. Before that I spent many years as a production DBA at Monster Worldwide, returning as principal DBA after a spell away doing some SQL contracting.  

My back story

I came to tech later than some. My ‘first’ career took me through RBS, British Gas, and T-Mobile/EE in roles spanning mortgage advisory, sales, and contact centre management. In 2008 I decided a full change of direction was needed and secured a place on the Web Development degree at the University of the West of Scotland. I quickly discovered that databases were my thing, a talk from a Database Architect during my studies helped me see that (plus I loved the SQL modules). I graduated in 2012 and landed my first DBA role at Monster shortly after.

Personal life

I’m married to Julie Ann and have 2 great boys, Graham and Johnny. We live in Paisley, Scotland. When I’m not working, I study physics with the OU. It’s a passion of mine and I love learning how the universe looks.

You can find me on LinkedIn where I’m most active, or follow me on Bluesky where I make no promises about keeping things strictly professional.

Balancing work and life – The COVID years – tsql2sday

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For this month’s T-SQL Tuesday, Tjay Belt (b|t) asks about balancing work and life. He lists some options and I decided to write about What rules have you implemented that made it easier to balance?

Balancing work and life

The initial shift to working from home didn’t phase me. I thought it was just a short term measure to keep people safe. I found that my team became more productive and there were high spirits initially. I was happy to work overtime and spend time on community work. (Looking back, I spent far too long at my desk)

The period up to July/August I was very productive with blogging and creating content for online presentations and YouTube videos. I then felt a little flat and my productivity dropped off a cliff. Similarly I had a small boost in February when I felt motivated. So I had to come up with some rules.

Striking the balance – The rules

I have adopted a few rules and try to stick to them but I don’t stress out about it. If I need to work on, or I don’t want to go outdoors, it’s not a big deal.

  1. Try to finish work at 5:30
  2. Spend 30 minutes outdoors every day
  3. Have some fun

Try to finish work at 5:30

Honestly: finish at finishing time. Don’t work for free. It’s my number one tip for balancing work and life. The work will always wait for you. Now I’m not saying this is possible 100% of the time but it should be your aim. For example, I’ve had to deal with production issues that can’t wait but on the whole, I’m referring to the ticket queue and requests from end users. I’ll also take time back if I’ve had to work on at a time that suits me and my company.

My employer also introduced a new perk called Summer Hours where all employees get every Friday afternoon off during July and August. It’s such a fantastic employee benefit which is worth 4 extra paid days off per year.

Spend 30 minutes outdoors

I attended an online seminar at my work (Monster.com) talking about mental health. I was inspired by one of the speakers who had set up a podcast and blog called humansoutside. She described that simply spending 30 minutes outdoors every day had had a profound effect on her’s and her husband’s mental health. You should give the podcast a listen.

So now I try to spend some time outside each day. Whether is working in the garden, going a walk or just taking refuge from the rain under my Gazebo to drink a coffee, it is a refreshing habit.

Have some fun

I mentioned on a previous post that I had got a pool table at home. I’m lucky to have the space and I really use it all the time. I aim to clear the balls once a day. If I can play more and get my kids involved, even better.

John playing pool to avoid burnout in IT
John playing pool

I’m also a bit of a telly addict. During lockdown, I re-watched the series Curb you enthusiasm. It’s cringe comedy but I love the pedantry. I also re-watched Mad Men which is one of the all time greatest box sets (imho).

I try to have a box set on the go with my wife as well that we only watch at the pace where we can both manage it. (No sneaking ahead, even although sometimes it is tempting)

I hope this helps. Do whatever works for you but do try to do something actively to ensure you strike a work/life balance that works for you.

Take a look at my Sessionize speaker’s profile

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Take a look at my Sessionize speaker’s profile. I talk about data and cloud topics, and have done at some major SQL conferences and local user groups. Please get in touch if you’d like me to speak at your event. My live sessions are listed.

John McCormack's Sessionize speaker's profile
https://sessionize.com/john-mccormack/

Contact me

Sometimes, WordPress mail can be a little flaky. If I don’t reply to you, please send me a DM on twitter.

Pool breaks to avoid burnout in IT – tsql2sday

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Avoid burnout in IT

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This month’s t-sql Tuesday is hosted by James McGillivray (b|t) and he says:

Breaks are critical for our mental health. Write a post about relaxation techniques, dream destinations, vacation plans or anything else relating to taking a break for your own mental health.

Covid-19 WFH burnout

When we were first locked down in our homes in 2020, due to the first wave of Coronavirus, I felt like there was not much to do other than work. Football was cancelled, my kids activities were cancelled, we couldn’t go to the pubs or restaurants. So I worked. Extra hours were available to me and I just did them, often at my desk from 8-8. I had a small spare bedroom office which suited me fine when I worked from home 1 day a week, but it wasn’t ideal for spending so much time in.

I don’t know if I reached burnout but I know I was a bit fatigued. Other than to work as it was paying the bills, I had no appetite to do much else online. Friends and family were meeting by zoom and I didn’t feel like I wanted to join in. My own blogging productivity mostly stopped. I had been wanting to create some training content and I just couldn’t face it. I had an expensive mountain bike gathering dust because I just didn’t want to go outside.

New House

Fast forward to September and we moved house. I moved to a larger house with a dedicated garage/office. I know I’m incredibly lucky to be able to do this but it also allowed me one more thing, my own pool table. I’ve wanted one forever, actually I would have loved a snooker table but I couldn’t squeeze one into the space.

  • white two story garage
    Outside the garage
  • John playing pool to avoid burnout in IT
    John playing pool
  • Garage office
    Upstairs in the office

My short term escape to avoid burnout in IT

When I’m taking a break, I like to knock a few balls around on the pool table. Having something to do in my own house has been a godsend with other facilities constantly being shut down to prevent the spread of covid-19. It’s great to have the option to do this at home.

Relaxation goals

I’ve made it one of my 2021 goals to take 28 days holiday in a warm climate this year. We have an extended family holiday booked for Florida at the end of June. I don’t know if this will happen but I hope it does. I’d also like to spend two other single weeks away somewhere like Tenerife. Having these planned will break up the year and motivate me to work hard the rest of the time.

My wife and son went to Tenerife last January with my sister-in-law and niece. I could have gone but we knew nothing of coronavirus at the time and I thought I would just work to bring in some money, since I was on a short term contract. I was going to take a break in March and also planned on going to London and Lingen for SQLBits and DataGrillen during the year. Missing that trip was my biggest regret of 2019 because I ended up going nowhere.

Even if you can’t go anywhere, it’s still worth taking time off work to help avoid burnout in IT. I just hope this year that I do get to enjoy some sunshine with my family and friends.

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