I’ve been asked to talk to a group here at AOL about career development (no idea when, or really what the topic is). But, Jason and I were talking about it, and came up with this list of rules that I think are worth sharing, even if they’re not fully baked:

1. Don’t be a dick: Translated – be constructive, helpful and positive
2. Teach yourself something new on every project
3. Be passionate about what you do: If you’re not, find something else to do.
4. Get involved in the internal and external communities
5. Repeat step one
6. Know when to run: No one talks about it, but you have to know when to get out of a bad situation. I’ve been very lucky at AOL to know when it was time to move on to a new group or challenge. Thankfully, I’ve always found a soft place to land with new challenges.
7. Expect change, roll with it, move on: Working in a company means things will change. When you’re not in charge, there will be lots of stuff that happens that you don’t agree with. You have to know when to fight, when to give up, and when to move on. The quicker you can do all three, the better.
8. Update Have a support system: This one comes from Jen’s comment. It really helps to have someone in your corner – a spouse, parent, best friend or mentor who you can turn to. My wife is, of course, my most important, but I’ve had lots of mentors and good managers that have helped point me in the right direction.
9. Update Be someone who gets things done: This one is from Joe in the comments, but it’s a good one. People don’t care about excuses or reasons why things don’t happen. Be the one folks can go to and get things accomplished.\
   Cool, I think the presentation’s all done! Thanks, Jason!