Okay this is the second post in this odd series. I have a more testing specific post knocking about in my head but I'm trying to figure out how to trim the ALL CAPS ANGER out of it. Whilst I'm doing that, this arrived partly formed so I thought I'd better finish it.
So, here's a Testing Tunes #2. I'd not be surprised if you don't know who Felix Hagan and the Family are but I promise you they are well worth a listen. I suppose the way I would describe them is 'storytelling glam rock with a heavy dose of musical theatre influence'. I mean that in the most positive way, I promise you. It's melodrama with lyrical flair and I love it.
I was on the last few minutes of my slow cumbersome run from the train station into the office the other day, playlist blaring through my headphones on random just to get me to even move my feet. I was ready to get to a shower but wasn't sure how ready I was to start the day of work when the following song soundtracked my last few steps and entrance into the building.
(apologies for a Spotify link, I couldn't locate it on YouTube)
It's a song I've listened to dozens of times before but for some reason on this drizzly morning I noticed a specific line in it which got me thinking in a way it hadn't before.
'There's no free ticket for the rock star with the most convincing please'
What this said to me basically was that timidness will not help you get what you want. Don't complain if what you want is hard to achieve. Demand to be heard. Impress people. Do it with jazz hands and get the job done. As software testers, if you're relentlessly campaigning in the name of test advocacy to a team or company that's not fully convinced, you may need a bit of inspiration and a healthy nudge every now and again to get yourself re-invigorated. For me, this is a song which helps me with that.
If you're reading this still, please listen to the lyrics of the whole song or else the rest of my ramblings could seem off topic. The whole song to me is about loving what you're doing. It's about encouraging you to have enthusiasm for your craft and put your brave face on to try and make an impression and get what you want. Whilst I think that can probably be used as a guidance for lots of professions, I don't do anything else, I test software so that's what I related it to. I think this spoke to me because frequently we alone have our point of view in a conversation or team. As a lone voice it is useful to have self motivation to keep advocating for testing, even when it's hard or no-one is listening.
The other lessons I think this song can help remind me is that sometimes you need to steal from those you admire to be the version of yourself that gets the job done. It's not disingenuous to alter your behaviour or approach in different circumstances in order to achieve your goals. (I promise you that message is in the song as well.)
Try being proud of your actions. Try thinking about whether you would want junior members of staff to learn from your example. If you would want new testers copying you, keep doing what you're doing. Do it more, do it proud and do it with gusto.
So try embracing the jazz hands. Put your best smile on, stand tall and go wow the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment