The Best Programming Tool You've Got

I was watching The Dog Whipserer... Cesar is amazing! And during one of his shows he made a comment that really applies to our field. He asked a dog groomer what the best equipment was that he had. The groomer named some brand of expensive scissors. Most of us would name our favorite IDE or language. I know a few people who would say their Mac is their favorite development tool.

But Cesar got it right when he corrected the groomer. He said the tools were irrelevant. The best tool you have is yourself. Simple really, but when's the last time you took time to improve yourself. To invest in yourself?

Follow the advice of the financial analysts. Pay yourself first. You can only do your best job for your company if you're the best you can be. It's better for you and it's better for your boss.

Take some time this week and learn something new. Grails 1.0.3 just came out. Rails just released a new version. Erlang is on the rise. Or start small. Follow some of Matt's InfoQ tutorials

But learn something new. You're the best tool you've got. Act like it.

Nomadic programming

What is nomadic programming and why should you do it? Get the full scoop over on my blog.