It’s time to Get to Know ME with Paul Nguyen, our Network Administrator and general IT facilitator around Motivation Excellence. He’s got an ear for music too and appreciates a good love song! Take a short read about Paul and you’ll see why we enjoy having him on our team.
What’s your title and how long have you been at Motivation Excellence?
I’ve been with the organization for over 10 years as a System/Network Administrator.
What does your job entail?
“Where do I begin?
To tell the story of how great a job can be …
Where do I start?”
(Stealing lyrics of the 1970 “Love Story” theme by Andy Williams, replacing the word love with job instead.)
I sometime feel like I am a one-man band in a recording studio, doing a little bit of everything, a jack-of-all-trades but “master of none.” With technology advancing at such a rapid pace, learning on the fly to tackle everyday problems is challenging, but the payoff is the satisfaction I gain.
Here’s some, but not all of my job descriptions:
Foundational skills include end-user support, client/server operating systems, network infrastructure administration, security, scripting, database fundamentals, cloud computing, virtualization, data storage and technical communication.
What’s something special about working at Motivation Excellence that you’d like to share?
Seeing the Creative Team in action and how well they work together.
What’s an unknown or odd talent you have?
I used to play the piano by ear and heart (no technical or note reading skills).
What motivates you to accomplish things in your life (work or personal)?
Fear of being left behind.
What do you enjoy doing outside work?
Reading, listening to music, and lately, gardening with my wife, are some of my favorite activities. Cooking with family and friends, spending time together, and enjoying each other’s company are all great fun.
One thing that always makes you laugh is?
Nothing in particular, but many laughs throughout, with the unexpected causing the most amusement.
What have you done that helped you get through the pandemic?
Maintaining a positive frame of mind and avoiding letting distracting external noises interfere with my work.
What is the most unusual job you’ve ever had?
In 1975, when I was fresh off the plane from Vietnam, I got my first work as a janitor at a Holiday Inn. There are a few amusing stories associated with this work, but I won’t go into them.
This month, our theme for social media is recognition. What’s the best way to show someone meaningful recognition in your eyes?
My perspective on this is not a cash prize, not a message on the corporate payroll announcement page. When someone celebrates an anniversary at work, I think it’s nice to publicly announce it, maybe in an email to the whole company, that way others can also chime in with congrats. When someone does a good job, being able to “pat them on the back” with nice words and appreciation is always nice too.
