Hello everyone!
I hope you’re doing well and continuing to grow your skills every day.
This morning was a bit different for me—I finally completed one of the chapters in the DevOps learning path I’ve been following for quite some time. It reminded me of an important lesson: no matter how hard we try to learn something new, the world around us keeps changing.
When we work on developing skills, we’re not just racing against time to be faster. We’re also responsible for making sure the time we invest turns into something valuable and of high quality.
The Question of Quality
Today, quality is often not what we expect it to be—whether we’re talking about technology, services, deliveries, food, or even healthcare. More and more, I notice two extremes:
- Top Quality
- Low Quality (what I call the “Who cares, take it or leave it” quality).
Too often, people and companies don’t care enough about the quality of what they provide. This makes me wonder: if we don’t improve ourselves and our work, why waste the limited time we have—our time and the time of those who rely on us?
I’ve seen many cases where employees simply go through the motions. They don’t focus on developing their skills; instead, they learn how to avoid responsibility. The result? Poor quality, even when the business owner wants to provide real value.
A Lesson From My Manager
For more than 12 years, I’ve worked in different positions, companies, and industries. One thing I’ve always aimed for is delivering quality.
Years ago, a manager told me something I’ll never forget:
“We work in IT. If we want to grow and learn, we need to share knowledge and ideas.”
That advice stuck with me. It reminded me that real growth isn’t just about learning new tools every day. It’s about building on what we already have, improving processes, and creating value for others.
The “Lazy IT Specialist”
I once had a job interview where the manager asked me two questions:
Q1: “How do you see yourself in five years?”
My answer was simple and maybe unexpected: “In your position.”
Q2: “What kind of IT Specialist are you?”
I replied honestly: “I’m a lazy IT Specialist.”
At first, he was surprised. But I explained:
“I don’t like repeatable tasks. I don’t enjoy fixing the same problems again and again. And I don’t wait for someone to tell me what to do. Instead, I look for smarter ways of working, automating, and finding better solutions.”
To some people, that answer might sound risky or even wrong. But the truth is, that mindset has helped me grow. I focus on solving problems quickly, improving systems, and learning from others when I don’t know the answer.
Why Quality Matters
This post is not about length—it’s about quality.
Everywhere I look, I see services and products delivered with low standards. Too many people shrug and say: “It is what it is. It can’t be better.”
But I can’t agree with that. I simply refuse.
If you’re delivering a product, service, or solution, make it the best you can. Don’t waste time—yours or anyone else’s. Aim for quality in everything you do.
Final Thoughts
The world is changing fast. To keep up, we need to:
- Keep learning
- Keep improving
- Keep quality high
That’s what I try to do every day, and I’ll continue sharing my IT adventures here on this blog.
Thanks for reading, and let’s all keep pushing forward together.
Feel free to say “Hi”
w: https://zlefterov.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zlefterov-tech/