George Bernard Shaw said : “There are two tragedies in life. One is to lose your heart’s desire. The other is to gain it.”  I enjoy photography and every once in a while I will get a shot that is great. I do hope though I never get the ultimate shot. You know the one they will hang in the Musée du Louvre in Paris. Why? All the fun is in the quest. That’s where life happens. That’s where you encounter obstacles and subsequently exciting paths around them and you meet new people on your quest who add to the richness and colour of your life.

Despite the risk of theft,  today I always travel with my Nikon. The risk of losing $6k worth of gear is worth taking versus the risk of being in a place where just for a moment “the shot” is available to take and you are camera-less.  All the fun is in the quest.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ianzphotoz/

Some consultants I know are on the quest for the IT Executive, CIO or CTO job. They believe that these positions will be the penultimate career objective. In many cases, once achieved, the role is short-lived and according to a recent survey results in an 58% job dissatisfaction rating. I spoke to a Corporate CEO who recently fired his CIO. (The 4th in 9 years) He said about this person. “He was our top IT projects guy. He got the CIO job and he just went to sleep.”. His quest was over, the fire that had pushed him forward was extinguished.

I routinely turn down senior management offers to stay in the heat of battle, working with my clients and to make sure that the fire burns brightly. It is where all the cool problems are, the innovation, the ideas, the camaraderie of the teams and the fun of seeing a solution created.