I'm writing fairy tales about jam again. Let me tell you, it's not easy hiding a work frustration in a jammy fairy story!

One of the hardest things to learn in any job is to know which tool to use; and when.

You need to know what the expected outcome is; your audience; your colleagues; your limitations; their limitations; existing expectations; and have a good sense for how much change can be bourne. Barrelling into an existing organisation and expecting people who have used certain software for years to change to your preferred package so that you are most comfortable with, is probably too much change for the organisation to bear.

It will have a cost too, far out reaching the actual cost of software - training people in the new software, loss of production while they get used to their new tools, frustration because they have to change their mindset to cope with new skills, possibly even morale - people might get quite bent and twisted at this forced ripples in their ponds. You've got to understand that it's probably easier for you to have a bit of pain learning to use the existing products, even though you think they're inferior and beneath you, than trying to get 30 people to change their ways when they have no desire nor real need to.

Keep eating the strawberry jam rather than making everyone love partridge berry jam - it's less painful for everyone and will leave a better taste in your mouth and less egg on your face. That last sentence would make more sense if you'd read the convoluted fairy tale I just deleted out of Notpad.

Let's face it, if you're half the whiz kid you profess to be, it would be a fairly easy transition to make. The test of a mature, experienced trademen is his ability to see the implications of his solutions - be that guy!