My colleague shared his story, which I bring to your attention as a longrid for the weekend :)

Hello, reader!

My name is Alexander Abdullaev, I have been working at Veeam for 9 years now. My career in IT during this time was rather unusual - one can say “diagonally”, and I would like to tell you about it today. And also about how I became a “part-timer” - an IT specialist and trainer in the gym. Perhaps, after reading my story, someone will see for himself new horizons in work and in life, someone will have the courage to take a decisive step, or just listen more attentively to his desires and aspirations and embody them.
So, I invite you under the cat.
')

From R & D to CIS, or from Jupiter to Orion

At first I worked in R & D and went from a developer to a project manager. It all started with the work on the product VeeamONE, with popular technologies - .Net (C #), MSSQL, PowerShell. The team developed, grew, and we have already become involved in individual new projects related to the main one - Robocop, RainyDay, integration with Veeam Backup & Replication. A very interesting part of the projects, which was also in our work, is the writing of plug-ins for service providers. They had to be in some way a “surgeon”, engage in reverse engineering, parsing, hacking, sniffing, etc.


Our team is VeeamONE. In a white T-shirt - Acne, our head.

However, over time, I felt that my professional development was no longer as fast as before - in particular, due to the limitations of the technologies used in box development. Then I got a little bored. I will not say that it has become absolutely unbearable, but there was already no drive at the beginning of the road. And I was already thinking of leaving this area of ​​activity and doing something else, because there are so many interesting activities around, and our life is not limited to C #, SQL and PowerShell. And baby- son, I came to the Boss, and said baby, that work well, but was tired a little. The boss suddenly remembered that in CIS (the corporate information systems department) the Project Manager for the DevOps team is required, and suggested that I try.

But it turned out that CIS is a completely different universe. There is a different atmosphere for life, other laws, gravity, molecular bonds. And the difference between R & D and CIS is about the same as in life on Jupiter and Orion.

However, the energy of knowing new unknown worlds moved me, and I agreed.
On the very first day on the DevOps team, I got to plan a sprint. The meeting lasted about an hour. After him, I went out - and panic swept over me. I thought, “Well, that's it, I went.” I did not understand a single word at the meeting! Completely different technologies, other processes - all different!

At this difficult moment, I called Acad (he was my boss when I was still in R & D, you saw him in the photo above) and told him about my experiences. Acne helped me with advice: to approach the tasks not from a technical point of view, but from an organizational one.

And it worked. After all, technically I was zero in DevOps, but I spent a very long time developing it in R & D. But my advantage was the human attitude to work and to colleagues. And this is appreciated always and everywhere. And gradually it became something to turn out, I already benefited the team (probably, therefore, I was not fired in the first few months :-)).

Does Atlassian support Atlantes?

But life is changing, and it so happened that Atlassian-stack was given to our team, and there was no one to take it to - and they gave it to me. Being engaged in this project, I began to devote myself more and more to him. And as a result, somewhere in a year, I separated from the DevOps team and only engaged Atlassian. Now I am engaged in ensuring the work of Jira and Confluence: configuration, management, planning, integration, and so on and so forth.



By the way, I need an Atlassian assistant, so if any of you are in the subject line, please send a resume to job@veeam.com .

Search queries are good for your health!

In parallel, I was developing in the field of sports: in 2013 I entered and after 5 years I graduated from the National State University of Physical Culture, Health and Sport. P.F. Lesgaft in St. Petersburg.

The decision to get a higher education in this area arose due to the fact that I, like all IT specialists, Google. Themes of healthy lifestyles, fitness, cubes and other popular and enticing things were interesting to me - just like many others. But at the same time I wanted to understand everything myself, get to the bottom of the root causes, before the beginnings, the foundations. On the Internet there was a lot of heterogeneous information, often contradictory. Having studied “KBDU”, “3-po-15”, “not after six”, “cardio-platelet”, “messes up to the cafe” and other hashtags, I realized that I could not build a strong house on this foundation. I decided to go for basic knowledge. And I did not see a better place than the University of Lesgaft. I know firsthand about all kinds of “Coaching Courses” - there is, in my opinion, superficial knowledge (although quite enough to be a “gym instructor”). So I went to study at the University, in the direction of "Athleticism" in my 33 years. I will say right away that the training was in absentia (because I needed to work) and, besides, paid (because it was a second higher education).

He graduated from the University after 5 years - but they flew like 1 year. I acquired a second profession and now I work part-time as a coach.


Our student group on the day of receiving diplomas. In the 3rd row in the center - PF Lesgaft.

"Who wants - he will achieve!"

Before the university, I went to the hall like ordinary IT specialists - to pump up. Of course, the knowledge gained at the university helped me a lot: I understood the basics, the methods, the theory, the basic sciences. This developed my interest in improving my physical abilities, really motivated to become stronger. And as a result, I decided to take the path of an athlete. The key point was the statement of our curator, abandoned somehow by him in one of the classes: “If you are not at least a CCM in your chosen sport at the 3rd year of a sports university, you should think about whether you are studying there.”

These words on the whole coincided with my attitude. I think they can be applied not only to the sport - to any business, to work. If you do not achieve success in your business - ask yourself, are you doing that?

In general, the words of the curator sunk deep into my soul, and from that moment on my preparation began. As a result, in addition to receiving higher education in the field of sports, I managed to pass the standards, first to the 1st grade, then to the CCM and then to the master of sports in powerlifting, as well as the master of sports of international class in barrening. I remember when I was going to take the discharge, many said: “Where? What for? You are 36! At 25, they finish their sports career, but what do you mean? ”And so on. And they said, and athletes, and even coaches. What now? Now says the master of sports book and icon :)

Learned by yourself - teach others

As I have already said, I am now part-time working as a personal trainer. I conduct training at the gym, in the boxing room (boxing, muay thai, self-defense - the initial level). My colleagues also come to me to study, many go all the time. I'm sure they like it. Also sure of his approach. After all, I do this not for the sake of material gain; my motive is different - to share knowledge, help people, tell, teach. I hope I get it.

As for physical education and the health of colleagues - in the office we have a five-minute fitness stop (more precisely, 15 minutes). There is a group in Skype and MS Teams, we gather in a rest room, do warm-ups, stretching, stand in the bar, share exercises, set ourselves Chelendji. In these classes, I prefer not to claim leadership, but I like the way I do everything and do the same exercises that my colleague in the IT workshop shows :).


Of course, when people ask me for advice about training, for example, in the kitchen for tea, I don’t refuse - such a “kitchen” talk about fitness brings a person to the gym to attend me and he becomes a regular visitor in the gym.



In our company, many guys are engaged in various sports. Jogging is popular, there is even a Running Lovers Club. Cycling, volleyball, basketball, football and other types. Sometimes we participate in citywide and all-Russian sports projects.

My sport is individual, I personally compete in competitions. There was one event in which I participated as a captain of the corporate team, even engaged in a little preparation and organization - this is the “Race of Heroes”. I myself, unfortunately, could not participate in the race, because I hurt my knee in the morning run. But the guys did a great job, they still performed well.

Does Ilya Muromets live in every engineer?

I'll tell you about myself now, and you decide. My story began in childhood. Back in school, my favorite subjects were mathematics and physical education. My enthusiasm for mathematics led me to a passion for geometry, astronomy, physics, computer science, and hobbies for physical culture led me a long way in different areas of it.

What united these two seemingly completely different directions? As computer science, mathematics, physics, and anatomy, physiology, biomechanics are exact sciences. That is what attracted me. Science - only she could give intelligible answers to the millions of questions that I have when I just live and watch. The desire to get to the bottom of axioms, to laws, to mechanisms is probably one of the important qualities of an engineer, be he a software engineer or a quality engineer. This unites us - all those who are enthusiastically engaged in the IT field, IT specialists. This also leads me further in trying to find answers to how our body works, how our body works, starting from external, aesthetic qualities and ending with the biochemistry of living organisms and physiology.

In particular, thanks to the study of physiology, I stopped eating meat. (And, please, don't tell me “what about squirrels ?!”, otherwise I’ll stop talking to you :) I’m not a vegetarian, I don’t eat only animal and bird meat. Fish, eggs and dairy products - I use. The science that led me to this diet is the physiology of digestion.

After switching to this type of food, my power indices increased significantly, my mood improved, my illnesses stopped, I had less time to sleep, my recovery rate after training increased ... and so on. (In general, it is possible to talk on this topic separately in order to tell why it is desirable to refuse meat.)

Thus, hobbies of one science, one kind of activity lead to hobbies in other areas. Remember the science of "Natural"? Here is something similar happening in my life. Becoming a specialist in one area, the brain projects findings, laws, mechanisms, and algorithms onto other areas of life activity. And the inquisitive mind does not give us peace and is constantly looking for answers. Our path continues and can not be completed with a particular degree or with the next sporting title or with any other achievement, whether it is a successful or not very completed project or the beginning of something new. So it turns out that in the process of life we ​​will realize one of the well-known sayings: "live and learn - a century" (a fair continuation of which is "you will die a fool anyway"). Or, in other words: "the more I know, the more I understand how little I know."

Sources of knowledge and calories

The textbook of physiology, biochemistry, anatomy is for a start. There are sections in these three pillars that interest the reader more or less - and he will already find his way. Although it may be boring for someone ... I can advise something concrete individually. This area is very extensive, with some general advice is difficult to do here.

Do I have a "signature" dish? - yes, since childhood I love dough. Like pasta. When eating meat, my favorite dish was macaroni with goulash, with gravy — I could eat a whole bowl! - or pasta in a fleet. Now I am doing something similar with red fish.

Pro time management

In addition to the work on which you work, many probably also have other hobbies. But in the day 24 hours. And I want more - to be in time. The question is, how is it possible to combine everything? Where to take time? How to improve time management?

I have it this way: do it once, do two things, do three times :) That's the whole “time management”. Everything else in the popular books about "time management" is most often about "how to force yourself to do" this or that, to start one or the other. My answer is simple - no way! Do not want - do not do it. Do you want to - do it. No need to invent and deceive yourself. Stop and think whether you want to or not. If you want, go ahead! As they say, a person who wants, is looking for opportunities, and a person who does not want is looking for excuses. (Here I would add "and read books on time management.")

For example, now is 23:50. And I sit finish this article. My day began at 8 am. And tomorrow I have 2 trainings in the morning, one at 8, the second at 9, then work and training on the ServiceNow service platform until 8 pm After him, there’s work again, since nobody will do it except me. And still you need to paint 2 workouts to two other clients who will study on their own tomorrow, since I will not be able to come because of the training. So I don’t have time to read time management books and think about how I can replace lunch and breakfast and get to work.


This is what my typical work day looks like.

I note that being carried away by something else (besides what I do at work), it turns out to achieve greater success in both areas. This ability to "switch" from one activity to another has a beneficial effect on a person. It is not for nothing that they say that rest is a change of activity. Of course, sometimes fatigue accumulates and you just want to be in complete silence and solitude, not thinking about anything, not making decisions and doing nothing, a kind of “seal” mode. But then the inquiring mind does not give rest again and leads you somewhere again.

About sports goals and future plans

Now I am studying what is called the “river of recreation”. Recreation, restoration of movements, mechano-regulatory system, postural-tonic reactions, reflexes, kinesiology - this is the next level. You know, it is interesting to learn from a person about his diseases not from his mouth, but simply by pressing the “buttons” on the body. The body itself says that it is so and what is wrong. Where are the violations and what needs to be repaired - despite the fact that the head attached to this body can say anything ... Surprisingly, for example, it turns out that when a person does not work a normal motor response to arousal, and when I exercise, but target, I restore this reaction - you would see the face of a man! This is usually such a surprised-smiling, happy face in his eyes, joy for the fact that he no longer "hurts" and "works"! This is really exciting. In this area I want to develop further, it is very interesting to me.
Still, of course, it is interesting to prepare an athlete from scratch. Unfortunately, there is no such athlete, which I would prepare and who would win the competition. There are people who as a result of training have become stronger, slimmer, lose fat, etc. But there are few people who want to prepare for sports competitions. After all, in order to win a medal, you need to “plow”, but we are usually lazy.) Well, usually people go to a fitness club with other motives. And some even choose to drink a beer with friends instead of a workout ... But this is a topic for another discussion on the topic of “motivation in sports”.

In addition, I recently became a judge. So far only regional is the first level. But this opens up further horizons - it is possible in this area to also develop, reach the international level.