I remember when I was a young pup working as a programmer for a company that made controlled access (security) systems for IBM and Ford and such, that my fellow coders and I would muse about our managers and how it seemed they were more interested in controlling us rather than encouraging us to work harder. In fact sometimes it seemed like they would deliberately demotivate us for god knows what reason (most probably political gain).
We came to the conclusion that a good manager worked for his engineers, not the other way around. A manager's job is to get his engineers whatever it takes to make them more productive. If they need an in-circuit emulator, then we should rent one. If they are stuck on a coding issue you should be able to resolve it for them. If they need a newer version of a compiler you need to pay the upgrade fee, etc. Within reason of course, but the point here is that the title of manager should be replaced by the term "Uber Grunt" and then you will have the right mindset to manage others.
This is a core value I have carried with me throughout my career; that a good manager doesn't control his people, but rather works for his people in an attempt to make them as productive as possible. The worst thing a manager can do is demotivate a fellow team member. This is easy to do, but must be avoided at all costs. It is one of the major mistakes a manager can make. Better to over look minor transgressions than to alienate an otherwise productive resource. Don't forget who works for who.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Sunday, January 27, 2013
San Francisco Cheap Hotels
So now that I have finally found an apartment I figured I better document my recent travels at cheap hotels in the area so I don't forget all the wonderful places I have found. All of the following hotels I mention are true hotels, not hostels, which basically means you get your own bathroom, you don't have to share one with other people which is a must for me.
The Americas Best Value Inns are all over the place in this area. I stayed at the one in the Marina district which is on Lombard Street between Pierce and Scott street. My friend Nick stayed at the one near 7th and Folsom. In both cases the rooms were fine, decent sized, pretty clean and fairly cheap. I paid like $65 a night, Nick paid like $65 a night then he booked another week at the front desk and they gave him a $55 a night rate. The Marina District one is one block from Chestnut which is a nice 5-6 block shopping area with decent clubs and good restaurants. There are a bunch of other hotels up and down Lombard street (the Cow Hollow, The Alpha, The Surf, etc) which all rent for between $69-$99 per night. Lombard is a very safe area and I never felt in danger regardless of time or day. It is also an easy walk to Filmore and Union which is a nice shopping area with some decent night life. The Americas Best Value Inn at 7th and Folsom is closer to the main downtown area though.
I also stayed at the Grant Plaza hotel which is one block up the hill from the main Chinatown gate. It is an excellent, safe neighborhood and the room cost me $65 a night (they advertise $69 but I got a better deal online) and while it is clean and centrally located, the room was tiny (maybe under 200 sq ft) and the 20" TV only got like 7 stations. Still, if you want the heart of San Francisco I would recommend the Grant as it is probably one of the best cheap hotels in downtown San Francisco. One block down, actually next to the main gate is the Astoria hotel which I have also heard good things about. In fact one of the guys at work actually lived there for like 13 months. He eventually got them to rent him the room for $1,400/month but the typical rate is like $79 per night. Keep in mind that neither of these hotels have wifi, laundry and most of the other things you might expect. They are very simply a room.
If you are willing to pay a bit more the Mariott near 2nd and Folsom is an excellent choice. My company had an event there and I asked at the front desk how much a room was and they told me $125 a night. I was shocked and asked if that was some sort of special and he said no, that it was just the slow time of year for them (January) and that rooms ranged between $125-$225 a night depending on time if year and in town events (conferences tend to increase the price as they are close to the Moscone Center) but this is a very nice hotel for $125 a night.
I also visited the Gaylord Inn Suites located near Post and Taylor which is a bit close to the Tenderloin but I thought it would be pretty safe if I kept away from the Geary area. The nice thing about the Gaylord is it is a longer term solution, so all rooms are decent sized, have pots and pans and plates and silverware. Typical mini fridge and micro wave and I believe even a small range. The monthly rate is $2,000/month which, for the middle of downtown San Francisco with no lease required is quite reasonable. The neighborhood is close to a bad area though so I would physically check it out at night first before I committed to staying a month. I chose to stay at the Grant for like 2 weeks instead because I wanted to check out more neighborhoods and a month in one place was too long for my purposes. The weekly rate at the Gaylord Inn is like $750 which is not that great a deal.
Finally, I wanted to get a more comfortable, clean and modern room so I visited San Bruno. San Bruno is about 15 minutes south of San Francisco on the Caltrain so it is quite commutable. Once you get off the Caltrain you need to walk 5 minutes to get to El Camino Real which is the main highway through San Bruno. You will walk through a little neighborhood which is a bit odd, but its a pretty safe neighborhood and it is literally a 5 minute walk to the main drag where most of the hotels are located. Much like Lombard street in the Marina District, there are a bunch of hotels up and down the main boulevard ranging from $55-$85 per night (Howard Johnsons, Budget Inn, Ramada, etc). I had discovered the Super 8 which had a 8.4 out of 10 rating on Trip Advisor so I checked it out first before visiting the Gateway Inn and the Ramada. The Super 8 was the best by far. Excellent, large, clean rooms, free breakfast (waffle maker was cool) 40" TV with over 100 channels, free wifi, mini-fridge, microwave, coffee maker, etc. Very nice room, I would give it a 9.0 on Trip Advisor. The staff is friendly and it is across the street from the main San Bruno street which also has a casino on it which is great for poker players like me. It is also one block from a Walgreens which is open until midnight and there are two liquor stores nearby which are open until 2am. There are many great restaurants in San Bruno most within walking distance of the hotels. The Burmese restaurant and Hiro's Sushi are just awesome. Also, San Bruno prices are about 30% less than San Francisco on almost everything ranging from liquor to food so all in all this is my favorite place to stay and when I need to come back to San Francisco in the future this is where I will stay. I ended up paying $65 a night for an excellent conveniently located room.
The Americas Best Value Inns are all over the place in this area. I stayed at the one in the Marina district which is on Lombard Street between Pierce and Scott street. My friend Nick stayed at the one near 7th and Folsom. In both cases the rooms were fine, decent sized, pretty clean and fairly cheap. I paid like $65 a night, Nick paid like $65 a night then he booked another week at the front desk and they gave him a $55 a night rate. The Marina District one is one block from Chestnut which is a nice 5-6 block shopping area with decent clubs and good restaurants. There are a bunch of other hotels up and down Lombard street (the Cow Hollow, The Alpha, The Surf, etc) which all rent for between $69-$99 per night. Lombard is a very safe area and I never felt in danger regardless of time or day. It is also an easy walk to Filmore and Union which is a nice shopping area with some decent night life. The Americas Best Value Inn at 7th and Folsom is closer to the main downtown area though.
I also stayed at the Grant Plaza hotel which is one block up the hill from the main Chinatown gate. It is an excellent, safe neighborhood and the room cost me $65 a night (they advertise $69 but I got a better deal online) and while it is clean and centrally located, the room was tiny (maybe under 200 sq ft) and the 20" TV only got like 7 stations. Still, if you want the heart of San Francisco I would recommend the Grant as it is probably one of the best cheap hotels in downtown San Francisco. One block down, actually next to the main gate is the Astoria hotel which I have also heard good things about. In fact one of the guys at work actually lived there for like 13 months. He eventually got them to rent him the room for $1,400/month but the typical rate is like $79 per night. Keep in mind that neither of these hotels have wifi, laundry and most of the other things you might expect. They are very simply a room.
If you are willing to pay a bit more the Mariott near 2nd and Folsom is an excellent choice. My company had an event there and I asked at the front desk how much a room was and they told me $125 a night. I was shocked and asked if that was some sort of special and he said no, that it was just the slow time of year for them (January) and that rooms ranged between $125-$225 a night depending on time if year and in town events (conferences tend to increase the price as they are close to the Moscone Center) but this is a very nice hotel for $125 a night.
I also visited the Gaylord Inn Suites located near Post and Taylor which is a bit close to the Tenderloin but I thought it would be pretty safe if I kept away from the Geary area. The nice thing about the Gaylord is it is a longer term solution, so all rooms are decent sized, have pots and pans and plates and silverware. Typical mini fridge and micro wave and I believe even a small range. The monthly rate is $2,000/month which, for the middle of downtown San Francisco with no lease required is quite reasonable. The neighborhood is close to a bad area though so I would physically check it out at night first before I committed to staying a month. I chose to stay at the Grant for like 2 weeks instead because I wanted to check out more neighborhoods and a month in one place was too long for my purposes. The weekly rate at the Gaylord Inn is like $750 which is not that great a deal.
Finally, I wanted to get a more comfortable, clean and modern room so I visited San Bruno. San Bruno is about 15 minutes south of San Francisco on the Caltrain so it is quite commutable. Once you get off the Caltrain you need to walk 5 minutes to get to El Camino Real which is the main highway through San Bruno. You will walk through a little neighborhood which is a bit odd, but its a pretty safe neighborhood and it is literally a 5 minute walk to the main drag where most of the hotels are located. Much like Lombard street in the Marina District, there are a bunch of hotels up and down the main boulevard ranging from $55-$85 per night (Howard Johnsons, Budget Inn, Ramada, etc). I had discovered the Super 8 which had a 8.4 out of 10 rating on Trip Advisor so I checked it out first before visiting the Gateway Inn and the Ramada. The Super 8 was the best by far. Excellent, large, clean rooms, free breakfast (waffle maker was cool) 40" TV with over 100 channels, free wifi, mini-fridge, microwave, coffee maker, etc. Very nice room, I would give it a 9.0 on Trip Advisor. The staff is friendly and it is across the street from the main San Bruno street which also has a casino on it which is great for poker players like me. It is also one block from a Walgreens which is open until midnight and there are two liquor stores nearby which are open until 2am. There are many great restaurants in San Bruno most within walking distance of the hotels. The Burmese restaurant and Hiro's Sushi are just awesome. Also, San Bruno prices are about 30% less than San Francisco on almost everything ranging from liquor to food so all in all this is my favorite place to stay and when I need to come back to San Francisco in the future this is where I will stay. I ended up paying $65 a night for an excellent conveniently located room.
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