On Saturday, February 2, Red Hat Brno hosted a “Snake workshop” for PyLadies CZ.
Before I begin describing the event, let me first write a bit about the concept.
PyLadies CZ is an informal group of people that (among other things) organize three-month Python courses for women (mostly beginners). These courses have been going on for about five years in Brno, and have heavily influenced the workshop.
#DeathFlu
#ZombieDeathPlague
These were just a couple of variations of hashtags that propagated through the chat channels shared by Red Hat associates and upstream community members during the course of the DevConf.cz and FOSDEM events, as a flu-like infection went off like a bomb among our friends.
Companies are now taking pride in their rankings for providing their employees with flexible, relaxed, and comfortable working hours to help them manage their lives better. In return, employers get access to the best talent from across the world without having to consider the geographical constraints. It is happening now more than ever, and needless to say that no one is perfectly equipped to tackle the emerging unexplored challenges that come with it.
Of course, we saw this coming. We knew there would be problems with the incompatible working hours, the difference in work cultures, technical problems with connectivity, etc. What was inadvertently overlooked was a simple fact that “humans are social animals.” We have been conditioned to rely on society around us for every kind of exchange and we do need a social confirmation of some sort to stay motivated and driven.
I’m often asked about the timing of linux.conf.au as it generally occurs during January, or early February, when a lot of people in Australia and New Zealand are taking a summer break. My response is that the timing is perfect as it provides a much needed mental jump start at the beginning of the year, and always leaves me excited about the amazing things happening within our Open Source community.
The 2019 linux.conf.au in Christchurch NZ, I’m very pleased to say, did not disappoint in this context. It easily stands as one of the best conferences I’ve been to in the last 10+ years, and I already can’t wait for next year’s conference in the Gold Coast of Australia. In addition Red Hat continues to sponsor the conference each year, and several colleagues had speaker slots.
This time of year, Brussels, Belgium is always a big community focal point for free and open source software, when FOSDEM brings passionate and talented members of the community to town.
Many organizations take advantage of the gathering and stage events of their own. Red Hat’s community members are pleased to host and participate in all of these events, especially FOSDEM.
A lot of people think New Years Resolutions are doomed to failure, so instead of going down that path, lets do something that will create the opportunity for progress. Let’s all stop licking cookies.
To paraphrase my colleague, Dave Neary, cookie licking is when you volunteer to do something and underestimate the commitment required. Then, instead of stepping back so someone else can do the work, you keep the task marked as yours, preventing someone with time from taking it. This can also manifest as staying on as part of a leadership group you don’t have time for, thereby creating a block on consensus and decision making when you don’t have time to show up.