This weekend Optmzr.co is being honored at the Techpoint Mira 2013 award gala. This event is expected to draw more than 1,000 attendees, most of which will be wearing tuxedos and evening gowns to what is affectionately known as the "Oscars of Technology" for the state of Indiana. My wife and I are attending because our company's software tool, Optimizer 2.0 was nominated by some of our developers as "The Innovation of the Year" (and some other tech people considered it worthy of being a finalist... read more here.)
This gala is unlike many award ceremonies that I am used to, often featuring a cowboy comedian or a slideshow of farm scenes... instead, we'll be surrounded by tuxedos, ice sculptures and videographers. People will be tweeting and snapping pictures of each other in silly poses for their "social media strategy." All that is fine but somewhat Oscar-like from my point of view which is to say... weird.However, I don't want to down play the significance of this event or the motivation of the people behind it and being recognized. There truly are some exemplary thought leaders and innovative people involved. Several companies can trace significant growth as a direct result of being honored, while other Indiana companies have gone on to successful IPO's and international significance. Indiana has a budding tech scene and celebrating these accomplishments is an important motivator for many involved... and well deserved.
So what do software developers have in common with farmers? Both start with a foggy vision of what they want to grow, and how their work might materialize. They invest significant lonely hours, pouring heart and soul into the seeds of their idea. They shepherd their vision and act as stewards of their growing project and adjust both their visions and efforts according to what is practically most urgent. Both must exercise patience and faith. They live a daily mantra of "If I seed it, someone else will add the growth." Timing is also critical for both. Too much too early, or too little, too late and failure becomes imminent and apparent to both themselves (often later) but first to the on-looker. In the end, both the farmer and the software developer hope to build a fertile environment that perpetuates healthy returns for years to come. It's not always easy or pretty, but with hard work and some good fortune (luck?) they both can enjoy the fruits of their labor and talents.
I'm going to this event to celebrate Indiana technology and the common thread of an enterprising people group. I realize we wouldn't be there without our team's hard work, or our farmer's adoption. Hopefully the others in attendance won't mind my work boots... there is still a lot to do!
