Getting Back What You Put In

Today was Christmas, and one of the gifts I received is a delightful book titled Making Artisan Chocolates by Andrew Garrison Shotts. I've spent the day with family and friends, so I haven't had much time to read it, but the author's dedication at the front of the book contains a quote I just could not wait to share:

"From my father, Don, I learned work ethic and discipline. He taught me that a worthwhile outcome is fully dependent on the time and effort it takes to get there."

It's obvious that Mr. Shotts' father was a wise and thoughtful man. It doesn't matter if you're a chocolatier, a data architect or a mechanic, the effort that you are willing to put into your work determines the quality that you get back out. For me this usually means spending those late nights researching how SSIS works under the hood, or how to eek just a little better performance out of a stored procedure (although now that I have this book I may well be spending some time dusting off my chocolate tempering skills) but no matter who you are and what you do, these are words truly to live by.

And now, those raspberry-wasabi chocolates look irresistible...