Stevie Wonder’s work versus mine

I got the chance to see and hear Stevie Wonder live at Summerfest last weekend. As I suspected, he lived up to his name and put on a good show.

People of all types of backgrounds cheered, smiled, and sang his classics in unison. It was magical.

Guess who I saw + heard live last night? #SummerFest2015 #StevieWonder pic.twitter.com/tJMTMuLCic

— Luis Vazquez (@LuisBox7) June 28, 2015

Seeing that got me thinking.

Stevie Wonder’s music broke down barriers that night. We payed no attention to color, ethnicity, or society class. In those moments of song we all found common ground.

Stevie has intentionally purposed his music to create this type of environment. How do I know that? He said it during his concert… multiple times.

He talked about God and love. People who would normally be turned off by God and love talk were open to hearing Stevie speak about it.

His music has given him a type of influence in which people will pay attention to what he has to say – regardless if they agree with him or not.

Observing that forced me to ask myself some tough questions.

Do I purpose my work for anything specific? Does my work create anything beyond the obvious technical specs & solutions?

Do I purpose my work for anything specific?

Most people in my line of work focus on technical skills. They aim to be the best developer possible and are all about finding the best solution to a problem.

I don’t disagree with this approach entirely. However, as I grow with my business, I’m realizing more and more that technical skills are not my primary aim.

Many of the projects I work on have stress factors like fast-approaching deadlines or other type of roadblocks. Identifying stress points, taking the burden off of my client, and eliminating stress helps me build trust with my clients.

Working with someone you trust is way better than working with someone you don’t. Knowing that your developer will do whatever it takes to get the work done is invaluable. It makes for better sleep at night.

Acquiring the best set of technical skills becomes a byproduct of ensuring my clients are at ease with their project.

Does my work create anything beyond the obvious technical specs & solutions?

I won’t lie, when I asked myself this question, I automatically thought about the type of projects I’ve worked on instead of my actual work.

Project types have to do with specs. My actual work has everything to do with what sets me apart from most developers.

I’ve made lots of great friends in the tech world. Many of them are past clients or people who I worked with on past projects.

Making friends has always come natural to me. I find that being an authentic person in or out of business settings is what has helped me befriend great people.

The corporate world has a way of making people inauthentic. This means that people are often one way at work and another outside of work.

People are attracted to real people. They don’t trust inauthentic people – at least not right away.

What do you get when you pair authenticity with a purpose of relieving clients from stress points in their projects?

Long lasting friendships. I believe that my work has helped me create long-lasting friendships.

These are people I can hangout with outside of work. We talk about life, we ask and give each other advice, or sometimes we just shoot the breeze.

Creating those types of friendships is definitely beyond the scope of any type of technical specs!

Thank you Stevie

While my work hasn’t yet reached Stevie Wonder’s level, it’s nice to know that my work extends beyond code.

Like Stevie’s music, my work is more about people than it is about anything else.

Remembering that always puts things into perspective. Thanks for the reminder Stevie.

What about you? Do you purpose your work for anything specific? Does your work create anything beyond the obvious job, business, or service description?