Tag: TSQL2SDAY

T-SQL Tuesday #122 – Imposter Syndrome wrap up

I want to thank everyone who participated in this month’s #TSQL2SDAY! There are new folks starting their journey towards a new career every day and I believe that these stories can honestly help many individuals. Thank you, Steve Jones – (b|t) for letting me host this month and thank you Adam Machanic for starting this blog party back in 2009.

Overall, we had 27 individuals post or share their Imposter Syndrome stories and thoughts. I had a lot of great reading to do this week and weekend.

WriterSummary
Mala Mahadevan Mala shares her experiences and thoughts on Imposter Syndrome. She gives us five strategies to help keep us in the moment and be authentic to ourselves.
Todd KleinhansTodd shares his experiences with Imposter Syndrome and relates it to other experiences he’s had in life. He ends his post with final advice to padawans who may be experiencing Imposter Syndrome.
Rob FarleyAfter a mind-bending paradox, Rob dives into what Imposter Syndrome is like as a Microsoft SQL Server MVP and offers his solution to dealing with Imposter Syndrome.
Aaron BertrandAaron discusses how his career evolved and the various hats worn that forced him to work outside his comfort zone. He ends with solid advice and an image of a very suspect doggo.
Taiob AliTaiob shares how Imposter Syndrome affected his career and how his career evolved out of it. He also provides many fantastic links to resources that discuss and provide suggestions for Imposter Syndrome.
Martin SuraskyMartin discusses “YouTube syndrome”, the future of the next generation, and personal experiences. Final advice is offered by Martin and summarized with a quote from Ira Glass.
Lisa Griffin Bohm Lisa brings up the philosophy behind Imposter Syndrome while discussing how everyone differs in life. She ends with a positive message of encouragement to all those beginning their journey through Imposter Syndrome.
Jason BrimhallJason gives us a list of all the real imposters in the SQL community. Not really actually, but he does provide us with a very pragmatic approach to working through Imposter Syndrome. There are also some links to additional help dealing with Imposter Syndrome.
Kevin ChantKevin writes about when he’s experienced Imposter Syndrome and what the effects were on his work, specifically his phenomenal (whoops, spoilers) video: SQL Server related services in Azure. He ends with final advice on how to cope with Imposter Syndrome.
Deborah Melkin#BeLikeDeb, is my new resolution for the year after reading Deborah’s article. Deb talks about her experiences with Imposter Syndrome and gives us a great link to Mindy Curnett’s PASS presentation on this topic. The article ends with some sage advice.
Jess PomfretJess gives us great advice and insight into dealing with Imposter Syndrome. There is especially great advice if you are a speaker or want to get into speaking but feel like you aren’t up to par.
Taryn PrattThe article describes the challenges posed by Imposter Syndrome when Taryn arrived back to work at StackOverflow as a DBA. Taryn ends the post with final thoughts and ideas to overcome Imposter Syndrome.
Chris Voss; WITH ARTICLE ( SELECT [Chris shares two explicit experiences about Imposter Syndrome] FROM TSQL2SDAYPOST)
SELECT
[Suggestions and ways Chris resolved his Imposter Syndrome towards the end]
FROM ARTICLE
Sander StadSander summarizes their experiences meeting their idols on SQL Cruise and offers critical advice to anyone experiencing Imposter Syndrome. In fact, the experience Sander had is exactly the experience that led me to have this as an idea for TSQL2SDAY.
Nate JohnsonNate shares server migration pains and feeling the burn of Imposter Syndrome. After an entertaining read through Nate’s experiences, he summarizes some help for those who may be feeling inadequate at their job.
Andy YunAndy tackles Imposter Syndrome with assurance, self-examination, two core values, and a paradigm shift. It’s a quick read but has mountains of golden advice interlaced.
Shane O’NeillThe article talks about the moments where Imposter Syndrome sets in and also where Shane feels the most comfortable. I’m sure many people will be able to relate to this post.
Melissa ConnorsHere we read about Melissa’s experience where she was afraid to be found out as a fraud, only to discover a workplace paradigm that emboldens its employees. Melissa offers reading material and various resources to help overcome Imposter Syndrome as well as a fantastic idea for a series of printed stickers.
Leslie AndrewsLeslie shares how even Idera Ace’s and frequent presenters succumb to Imposter Syndrome. Leslie ends with some philosophic thoughts and what things help them perservere through those Imposter Syndrome feelings.
Kenneth FisherKenneth gives us a viewpoint into Imposter Syndrome and how he deals with those feelings. With a mindset adjustment, Kenneth keeps on swimming and gives their final tips
Drew Skwiers-KoballaDrew gives you three great tips for combatting Imposter Syndrome as well as a suggestion for your workplace. A quick but helpful read with some immediately actionable items.
Andy LevyHave you ever felt alone at work? Andy has, especially since he was the only DBA at his job. He writes about his experiences with Imposter Syndrome and how he pulls himself up again to deliver a great experience for his customers.
Elizabeth NobleElizabeth talks about the community and how they have helped with dealings of Imposter Syndrome. From role models to helping friends, there’s a good story to read here.
Shawn OdenShawn takes us down memory road where one career begets another. Once Imposter Syndrome takes over, he loops, rolls, spins, and hammerheads his way through. As with other participants, it seems as though he has found his inner voice to help qualm Imposter Syndrome.
Eugene MeidingerEugene also tackles this matter pragmatically and gives set directions for how he resolves his own Imposter Syndrome. You’ll read about his experiences and at the end he summarizes his suggestions nicely.
Allan HirtAllan gives us his take on Imposter Syndrome and shares a story “Closer To The Heart” in a different approach from many of the other articles. It features a close correlation between his life as a “Working Man” and the band Rush. He ties these two “Subdivisions” together neatly and ends with helpful advice.
Andrew PruskiAndrew gets a honorable mention here. It’s not a post made on T-SQL Tuesday, but it’s relatable all the same. Here Andrew gives us another view on Imposter Syndrome and suggests it’s more of a blessing than a curse.
I’m not quite sure how I got to where I am and now I’m too scared to ask for help. #ImposterSyndrome

T-SQL Tuesday #122 – Imposter Syndrome

As we enter the new year, I’m sure many of us are setting goals, resolutions, or perhaps beginning new challenges. Change can often be terrifying, but that’s how we grow. With this in mind, the topic I’d like us to write about this month is “Imposter Syndrome”.

Imposter syndrome isn’t a topic I’ve seen addressed before via T-SQL Tuesday and this is an issue I’ve commonly seen in the IT industry.

Imposter Syndrome – The persistent inability to believe that one’s success is deserved or has been legitimately achieved as a result of one’s own efforts or skills.

https://www.lexico.com/definition/impostor_syndrome

I can assure you that if you have felt this way before, you are not alone. People in the community who I would consider experts have stated they felt (and sometimes still feel) imposter syndrome. These are people with more experience than years I’ve existed on this planet and they still feel this way. Coincidentally, this triggers my own imposter syndrome when I think about that.

T-SQL Tuesday Topic

I want to read your stories about when you’ve experienced, seen, or overcome imposter syndrome! Was there a job that you felt you were ill-prepared for? Did you make a mistake or did someone say something that made you question if you were a true data professional? Maybe there was a particular task you ran into that made you question your experience? Did you resolve your tasks and succeed in your job? How did you overcome that feeling of being an imposter and solve your challenges? Maybe you haven’t experienced it yourself but you saw someone who was feeling imposter syndrome, were you able to help them?

You can be technical or non-technical with this post, the goal is to share experiences to help those also experiencing imposter syndrome. Maybe you are still feeling it, sometimes walking through your challenges can help you brainstorm solutions.

T-SQL Tuesday Rules

Here are the T-SQL Tuesday rules and a quick summary:

  1. Stay on-topic.
  2. Use the T-SQL Tuesday logo, and link it back to this post.
    1. Trackbacks should work, but if you don’t see yours on this post, please put a link to your post in the comments section.
  3. Publish your post between 0000 and 2359 UTC on 2020-01-14.
  4. If you have Twitter, you can tweet your post with the #tsql2sday hashtag

Do you want to host T-SQL Tuesday?

If you would like to host a T-SQL Tuesday you can read the rules on the T-SQL Tuesday site and ask Steve Jones if you can host.

T-SQL Tuesday #120 What were you thinking?

Thank you Wayne for hosting this month’s T-SQL Tuesday! Wayne shared last year a story where he had to reverse engineer a complex hierarchy pattern within a table. The developers appeared to do this to obfuscate how the software operated. This left him asking, “What were you thinking?” So this month, we are discussing stories that left you asking that same question.

Continue reading “T-SQL Tuesday #120 What were you thinking?”

T-SQL Tuesday #119 Changing my mind

Thank you Alex Yates for this month’s topic!

Something I’ve changed my mind on recently is working on contracting projects instead of performing work directly for a company. Very recently I had a (good) problem of choosing between a few different job roles and companies. The choice was not easy and two years ago I told myself I’d never do contract work again. I’m not talking about starting an S-Corp or an LLC but working for a company that contracts your work out to another company. I have also in the past changed my mind about how I update rows in critical systems and whether you can ROLLBACK a TRUNCATE statement (in SQL Server).

Continue reading “T-SQL Tuesday #119 Changing my mind”

T-SQL Tuesday #118 My fantasy SQL features

T-SQL Tuesday #118
T-SQL Tuesday #118

Thank you Kevin for hosting this month’s T-SQL Tuesday! It’s an interesting topic to reflect on features we wish we saw in SQL Server. I’m excited to read some of the other ideas and maybe we’ll see one or two get pushed out in the future!

I have three features I’d love to see from SQL Server. Two of these mostly exist already, but they are not easy to utilize. I wish so badly that SQL Server could generate smart Entity Relation Diagrams (ERD) and documentation. Really, I wish it could create the artifacts the way Redgate does. If I had a third feature to wish for while knowing it would be unrealistic, but I’d love if they had a feature to change the culture of a workplace.

Continue reading “T-SQL Tuesday #118 My fantasy SQL features”

T-SQL Tuesday #114 Puzzle Party

This months T-SQL Tuesday comes from Matthew McGiffen who has given us the topic of “Puzzles”, thank you for a great topic!

Puzzles can be fun or frustrating, but I like them because it can be a great way to showcase who you are and how you work. For example, I was given a puzzle from a company that was interested in me but wanted to know how I approached specific problems. They gave me a simple SQL query and three word problems to go along with it. My reply back illustrated how I approach problems, document findings, performance test, and also work to obtain business requirements.

I gave them back a long paper that broke down the primary problem into nine different scenarios for how to interpret their question and I wrote a total of 35 queries spanning all nine scenarios to pick the best option. This included a procedure they could run to test these scenarios and see my work.

You can find the procedure here on my github, you will need to alter line 56 with the options 1-9 to test a scenario.

Continue reading “T-SQL Tuesday #114 Puzzle Party”

T-SQL Tuesday #112 Dipping into my Cookie Jar

This month Shane asks us to reach into our “cookie jar” and pull out some life lessons. Thank you for an interesting topic to think and write about!

Shane also describes for us what this term means in our context:

Dipping into the Cookie Jar is about when the going gets tough and you don’t think you can handle anymore, then you think back about your accomplishments and take some sustenance from them. You dip back into that cookie jar and use whatever energy that provides to keep going.

https://nocolumnname.blog/2019/03/05/t-sql-tuesday-112-dipping-into-your-cookie-jar/
Continue reading “T-SQL Tuesday #112 Dipping into my Cookie Jar”

T-SQL Tuesday #110 Automate your Toggl dataset with SSIS

Something I’ve automated* recently was my import of Toggl data! So T-SQL Tuesday #110 seems like a great time to post this solution. Thank you Garry Bargsley for the great idea and being this months host! I put an asterisks next to automated, as obtaining the file from Toggl and placing its location is not … Continue reading “T-SQL Tuesday #110 Automate your Toggl dataset with SSIS”

Something I’ve automated* recently was my import of Toggl data! So T-SQL Tuesday #110 seems like a great time to post this solution. Thank you Garry Bargsley for the great idea and being this months host!

I put an asterisks next to automated, as obtaining the file from Toggl and placing its location is not automatic. They provide a premium feature to allow this or you could work on creating your own web scraper. (Which is probably against their rules of use on their site, since they are offering the file drop as a premium feature.)

So while that piece is not automatic, the ingestion, cleanup, and archive of data from the Toggl file is. Generally when I do automate a task, I will use a combination of Powershell, SSIS, BIML, Python, T-SQL, Bash, and whatever else may be necessary to get the job done.

Steve Jones got me hooked on Toggl back in July and I found it pretty easy to use. Since then I’ve begun creating analytics on tasks at my job and also in my life. I log my study time, blog work, and other extra curricular so I can begin to cultivate a data set about how I use my time.

Another thought, is that you can use Toggl with analytics to give your stakeholders insight into how your time is spent. Maybe you need to be left out of meetings because 25% of your days is spent in them? Maybe you have been doing too many projects for Todd from accounting? This gives your stakeholders a true insight into your day using tools to easily capture and identify your pain points which can be optimized.

Depending on your Toggl setup, you may not want to be very detailed with the information you provide. I personally normalize my data which is input into Toggl so it’s meaningless numbers without my master map which resides on my local computer. I want to keep my clients data secure and this information is hosted on Toggl’s servers. So that’s some food for thought, be mindful of what you are inputting into this online tool and what you’ve signed as far as Non-disclosure agreements.

So onto the SSIS package!

DISCLAIMER!!!

This should be done in a personal or safe environment, never production!

Created with Visual Studios 2017 Version 15.8.5, .NET Framework V 4.7.03056.

DBMS is Microsoft SQL Server 2017 (RTM) – 14.0.1000.169 (X64)

What does this SSIS package do? Well very simply, you export your detailed year view of Toggl (which is typically a pretty small data set, at least from my perspective), place it in a location, set your SSIS parameter for the folder location, create a new database or use an existing one and set it in the project connections, and let it rip.

Here is how you get your data from Toggl:

The home page for Toggl, click the Go to timer button at the top right.

Once you arrive at Timer, you can click on Reports to the top left corner.
Once at Reports, click Detailed at the top of the page towards the left, mosey over to the date drop down option on the right hand side and select "This year" or "Last year" depending on the data set you need to import, then hover over Export just below the year setting and select "Download CSV"
Once at Reports, click Detailed at the top of the page towards the left, mosey over to the date drop down option on the right hand side and select “This year” or “Last year” depending on the data set you need to import, then hover over Export just below the year setting and select “Download CSV”

Here is the final destination of the file I downloaded. You can place the file pretty much anywhere, just notate the location of the file for later.
Here is the final destination of the file I downloaded. You can place the file pretty much anywhere, just notate the location of the file for later.

Here is a link to my Github Project: https://github.com/Jonathanshaulis/Toggl_Import , so you can either fork or download the SSIS files. Place them somewhere on your computer where you want to store SSIS packages.

Once the files are downloaded and stored, you can open up the Solution file by double-clicking it. (Note: You will need Visual Studios installed along with SSDT including SSIS.)

Once the files are downloaded and stored, you can open up the Solution file by double-clicking it. (Note: You will need Visual Studios installed along with SSDT including SSIS.)

Explanation of the SSIS package

The package starts by checking for the existence of the archive and staging schemas, it will create them if they don’t exist. It will then do the same for the tables, we have the primary table we use, the staging table, and the archive table for when you have years of data stockpiled over time.

We’ll truncate staging and then load the staging table immediately after. Using the base data set from Toggl, I found it difficult to analyze the summed durations, so I create a new column on import that takes the duration and turns it into a decimal. This made it more convenient for me to use Power BI to report off of.

Also in the Data Flow (DFT – File to Staging) we have two file counts occurring, one counts errors and the other counts records that flowed to the destination.

Errors are logged to DFTStagingCountErr and the successful imports are logged to DFTStagingCount.

Afterward, we gather a count of the rows in the staging table and assign the count to the variable ESTStagingCount.

There is a condition check after the count that will stop the process if the two variables DFTStagingCountErr and DFTStagingCount added together do not match the count of the variable ESTStagingCount. This is important because it ensures a successful import has occurred before it continues onward and truncates our primary table to perform a full load.

Once we are sure all records made it to our staging table, we truncate our destination and move our file to our “production” table. This gives a complete refresh of the data for the year, but this also serves a conundrum.

What happens when we have two years of data?

  • The final step archives the data set that you’ve imported.
  • The query performs a “merge upsert” with a not matched deletion at the end.
  • If a row matches exactly between the archive table and production table, it will update the Toggl_ID to keep the latest version of that row.
  • If a row is unmatched on all columns, it will interpret that as a new row and insert it.
  • If a row is unmatched on all columns and the date of the row matches the max date found in the production table, it will delete out the row. This logic is to allow for data changes to flow to the archive table making the hosted Toggl data source the golden data source. This means rows in 2018 would not be deleted from the archive source once you import a 2019 data set, but it would delete out a 2019 row if you changed the data and it would import the newly corrected row.

So how do I run it when I have it open?

The SSIS package is open here with two markers, #1 and #2. Down below I give details about how to adjust these two pieces in the SSIS package. After they have been adjusted, you can run the package assuming all other steps were accomplished.
The SSIS package is open here with two markers, #1 and #2. Down below I give details about how to adjust these two pieces in the SSIS package. After they have been adjusted, you can run the package assuming all other steps were accomplished.
#1 This is the properties of the Connection Manager (project)Local.
#1 This is the properties of the Connection Manager (project)Local.

You’ll want to edit the Local connection manager to point to your instance. I would recommend to create a new database, something like “Career”. (I will be uploading more blog posts regarding Brent Ozar’s Salary Survey and creating a database portfolio in SSIS using the Career DB later.)

#2 This is the parameters screen to adjust the file location.
#2 This is the parameters screen to adjust the file location.

The last modification you need to make is to adjust the value for the Parameters Property File_Location. It doesn’t matter if you include the final backslash or not at the end of the string, I have error handling in an expression to make sure it is able to take either variation. Just make sure your file is in that location!

Voila! That’s it!

  1. Download SSIS package / Toggl File.
  2. Place SSIS package and Toggl File in ideal locations.
  3. Open SQL Server, create a new Database called Career or anything else you choose, or just use an already existing database.
  4. Open the SSIS package, adjust the Local connection to your instance and database.
  5. Edit the Parameter for the File_Location and point it to your file.

F.A.Q. and Troubleshooting

If you have questions or run into issues, please let me know and I’ll see what I can do to help troubleshoot. I’ll modify this section as time goes on and as changes are needed.

T-SQL Tuesday #108 Learning non SQL Server technologies

This month’s T-SQL Tuesday is hosted by Malathi Mahadevan. Our topic comes during the PASS Summit, a SQL event filled with learning, networking, and the #SQL Family! So it is only fitting that our topic is regarding learning and education. Thank you Malathi for hosting this month and for the great topic!

The topic is to pick one thing that is not SQL Server that we want to or already know. How do we or did we learn this skill and how do we add it to our resume? Continue reading “T-SQL Tuesday #108 Learning non SQL Server technologies”

T-SQL Tuesday #106 Trigger headaches or happiness?

Triggers are both a useful tool with a specific niche… and the devil. Thank you Steve Jones for hosting this week’s topic on triggers!

On the left we have triggers and on the right we have constraints.
On the left we have triggers and on the right we have constraints.

When used appropriately, it’s a great skill to have in your repertoire. When used inappropriately, you will probably ruin someone’s day. Continue reading “T-SQL Tuesday #106 Trigger headaches or happiness?”