To Produce & Protect: 5 Things That Creators Can Learn From IT Geeks

Writers and artists in one corner, and information technology pros in the other? Sounds like a classic right-brain/left-brain dichotomy, pitting creativity versus logic in a no-holds-barred cage match. In truth, artists need a megadose of pragmatism to operate with much success, and IT work sometimes demands a lot of creativity.

Over the past 15 months, I’ve interviewed numerous IT professionals on dozens of topics. They continually astound me with the ever-evolving breadth of their skills and approaches … many of which are applicable beyond the data center.

Forget their high-tech tools for a minute and consider what IT’s underlying purposes really are:

• To support the mission of the business or organization.
• To promote smooth, hassle-free running of everyday productivity.
• To protect valuable data resources.

IT pros are crystal-clear on one thing: Data is the lifeblood of their company.

Isn’t your work just as valuable to you as the intellectual property of a Fortune 500 company?

Think like an artist when it’s time to — absolutely. Operate from such a right-brain perspective that if someone dipped out the left half with an ice-cream scoop, you wouldn’t miss a beat.

But you may be able to get even more and better results out of that block of time by making a few tweaks on either side of it. Some of it is mindset, some of it is behavior, and yes, some of it means getting a little more hands-on with your computer hardware.

(1) Think in terms of systems.

A system, in this sense, is simply a way of doing some continually recurring activity. Ideally, a way that greases the skids so you can get it done efficiently, every time, without having to give it much thought. This can either support getting the best results possible, or free up time, attention, and energy for more demanding activities.

I have a system for compiling and cataloguing research. A system for planning the upcoming week and month. For ensuring that I hydrate with at least 72 ounces of water each day. For maintaining continuous learning about topics of interest and use. More.

Sounds like another name for routines? On one level, it is. But “routine” implies dullness and drudgery. Regarding something as a system is an elevated way of thinking about it that understands why it’s necessary and what it contributes to the bigger picture: doing the work you want to be known for, and living the life out of which it emerges.

This isn’t to buckle a straitjacket around your entire existence, but to … well, there’s no saying it better than Gustave Flaubert did:

“Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.”

(2) Clarify your best practices. In writing.

The phrase “best practices” is largely self-defining: a series of clear steps that is the best path to accomplishing an objective.

The one big bugaboo? What’s best is highly subjective. You and I may be after the same outcome, but your best may not be my best, just best for you.

I’m currently in the process of converting my backlist books into multiple e-book formats. Lots of work, lots of steps. Some steps need to be completed before other steps; with others, there’s leeway, but in the doing (and sometimes the doing over), certain orders make the most sense. In the process, best practices gel, which streamlines the entire process the next time.

Do I keep track of this in writing and for continued referral? You bet. The more steps involved in something, the less effective it is to try keeping track of everything in your head.

Other candidates for best practices: A social media strategy promoting yourself and your work. The morning sequence that helps you get the most done in the amount of time available. The ritualized way of getting down to work that seems most conducive to putting you in a creative mindset.

Nailing down best practices typically involves some evaluation, trial-and-error, comparison-and-contrast. Work it one way for awhile, then work it another. Pay attention to what works best. Write it down. Refer to it as needed. Stick with it until it doesn’t work best…

Because best practices isn’t a calcified set of habits that you retain for tradition’s sake. Instead, it’s continually open for re-evaluation.

(3) Make backups of your work. On-site & off.

Of course you know this is crucial. You’ve been hearing it since Bill Gates wore short pants. You’re probably tired of people badgering you about it.

But do you actually do it?

Three cheers if you do. But the odds are you don’t. Most people don’t. Which is why data recovery specialists can charge you whatever they feel like to resurrect files — precious, unduplicated files — off your crashed hard drive.

And all hard drives will crash. Eventually.

IT pros know this. They also know that having only an on-site backup is almost as risky as having no backup at all. Why? Fire, flood, tornado, theft … name your calamity.

Again: Is your work any less valuable to you? Then don’t treat it like it’s disposable. And don’t make me beg.

The best kind of backup system — the S-word again — is one that requires as little thought and fiddling as you can get away with. Time Machine, the backup program built into the Mac OS, excels at this, as do several third-party utilities on both platforms … but no one program is sufficient for an IT-level of protection.

Here are my best practices for backups:

(a) Use Time Machine for everyday backup of most of my hard drives and partitions. Time Machine runs hourly, and does versioning, so I can roll back to an earlier draft if necessary.

(b) Back up all my production data — work documents past and present, plus e-mail database — online to DropBox. It’s free for 2GB of space, and synchronizes almost instantly, with enough room left over to share too-large-for-email files with collaborators.

(c) Keep a simple, bootable backup of the (a) stuff cloned to a portable hard drive that my Most Adored stashes in her office. She brings it home one evening a week, I update the clone, and send it back with her the next morning.

Another IT maxim: A backup you can’t restore from is worthless. So run a few tests occasionally. Pretend you lost some files by moving them elsewhere, then try restoring them.

(4) Have spare hardware ready to take over.

The longer a business is crippled by hardware failure, the worse its chances for survival. But with system redundancy, even the catastrophic failure of several components often means no more than a hiccup in operations.

You may not have the same stark urgency to get up and running again, but still, think of the last person you saw posting online to explain a long disappearance because her only computer was in the shop.

Imagine it was you. How far behind would you actually be? With work? E-mail? Networking? So consider:

If you get a new computer and retire an older model that remains in working order, its resale value is negligible.

If you have only one, you can add another for cheap because of the same reason.

In either case, the cash involved with hanging onto the old machine, or springing for an auxiliary, can be earned (or lost) in the time your main machine is taking its time-out on the repair bench.

(5) Practice preventative maintenance and monitoring.

There’s a strain of thought out there that goes something like this: Today’s operating systems are so sophisticated that drive utilities are superfluous.

Bullshit. Disks are still disks. Things can still go wrong. Glitches can occur and compound. The only variable worth debating is what you use to treat and prevent. To that end, a couple of suggestions…

For Macs: Prosoft Engineering Drive Genius 3

When my back-up drive crashed recently — and crashed hard — this tool suite was the only utility to even recognize that it was attached, and soon had it brought back to life. The latest version adds the ability to do ongoing monitoring, which can alert you to disk problems so you can take action before they ruin your week.

The Mac OS does include the venerable Disk Utility, which I use weekly to verify the directory integrity of all disks. It also monitors S.M.A.R.T. status (self-monitoring, analysis, and reporting technology) for potential flakiness, but Drive Genius looks at more metrics, and reports problems automatically.

For PCs: PC Tools Registry Mechanic and other tools

Since I’m a Mac guy, I asked an IT pro (and fellow scribe) for his recommendation for the Windows side. David Niall Wilson runs a high-level IT department, and uses Registry Mechanic on the job and at home.

Says Dave: “It works great. It cleans, compacts, and monitors your registry for you, and they have a suite of other tools that are equally useful. Affordable, and something that actually makes a performance difference.”

And if you too want to monitor S.M.A.R.T. status, a little Googling will turn up a choice of freeware options that will keep an eye on it for you.

Yes, This Is A Lot To Absorb

And not just absorb — it’s a lot to implement, too. Especially if you’re starting from scratch. But nothing says you have to tackle everything at once. Focus on one, make it second nature, and grow from there.

Eventually you’ll cultivate a full-spectrum approach that supports your work from inception through creation, and ensures its survival.

[Photo by andryone]

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