Life as a Console Planner

One month into the new department, and about time for a quick look back.

A Quick Background
Now, many had been asking whether I requested for the transfer. To set the record straight. No, I did not ask for this, nor did I resisted. It was CK's idea, and I went along. It's not exactly the best thing that can happen to me, but it does benefit me to some extend. Ultimately, it prevents stagnancy. (See earlier rants)

The plan all along was *** SENSITIVE DATA DELETED *** till then, it'll be the same 'do my best' routine.

The New Environment
Two very prominent differences:

• Team Spirit. A significant culture change for me was the obvious sense of team work and camaraderie* (due to circumstances) which makes the long hours more bearable. Console Planning Team is a closely knitted specialist group. As their responsibilities are completely unique and sometimes exclusive, most of the time they can only relate problems to one another. Furthermore, most tasks were interlinked and mutually dependent. Beyond technical reasons, team rapport and morale was also good. For now the new team appears to have accepted me well.
  
• A totally opposite spectrum. To my surprise, planners primarily function based on estimates, and gut feel. The complete opposite of the perfect click on click precision which I imagined.
  My strengths in 'arcane' system technology tools, were inapplicable in this new environment dominated by experience, quick thinking and on the fly estimates. Indeed, in some situations, even mechanical scripts may be out-performed by dynamic out-of-the-box human ideas.
  
  
  "Precision, without understanding its inherent limitations is useless"
  
  
  I can't think of a more apt term than "Mental Agility". Mine had declined due to over-reliance on technology. Here is a great training camp to re-develope this aspect.
  

*this feeling has gone missing from the CAM team after 老爷left. Although I still enjoyed close bonds among several team mates, the team as a whole was no longer as united as before.