#263 Can You Prepare for an Interview?

I recently received this feedback and questions from a fan of the CRM Arch Podcast:

I've been listening to the show for a few months now and I have to say, you guys rock! I'm just getting started with CRM and every show, blog, and book of yours that I've read have been insanely helpful. Episode 65 in particular - I actually applied to the job that you mentioned, and I too was a bit thrown off by the posting but sent it off anyway since I live in Ohio and California winters don't sound so bad. Anyway, this afternoon I had a phone interview for said job and even though I've only had a few CRM "interviews" I caught a weird vibe and I wanted to check with you to see if this is the norm. We talked about the standard stuff - company overview, my resume and experience, etc. - then she basically gave me an oral archaeology exam. Some of the questions included (1) Tell me about debitage, and what are the three types of cortex? (2) How can you identify historic sites? (3) What are the differences between petroglyphs and pictographs? (4) Tell me about lithics (5) Other than extreme temperatures and wild life, what types of hazards can you expect to find in the field?

I don't mean to complain that I was given an actual job interview, but at the same time I was definitely thrown off seeing as it's a temporary, entry level, 4-week long field tech position with no per diem. I know this isn't standard, but quite honestly I choked on a few of the questions and am seriously doubting myself now. Would you consider doing a segment on interviews?

First, a bit of a recap. Episode 65 of the CRM Archaeology Podcast (on the APN at www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/crmarchpodcast/63) was mostly about a job posting on shovelbums.org that had some very outrageous bullet points referring to requirements for the positions. Check out the posting here.

The fan wants to know if we'll do a podcast about interviews? Certainly. I've blogged about interviews before and I talked about them in my book. I'll mention some things here, too.

Your Interview Questions

No resource can completely prepare you for any particular interview. There are some fairly standard interview questions that you can prepare for, but, it's really up to the interviewer and the type of job you're applying for. 

The first thing I'd do when applying for a job with a company that I know nothing about is ask about it on Facebook. The Archaeo Field Techs group and the North American Archaeological Tech Forum group both have a high number of qualified, experienced, field techs and CRM managers as members. There is a good chance that someone has worked for that company and knows the types of questions they usually ask.

If you don't get any information from Facebook then ask about the area you're going to be working in. It should be in the job posting. Find out what types of sites are common.

Check out the audio response to this from the CRM Archaeology Podcast, Episode 70.

Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the field!!

#262 Business, CRM Archaeology, or Both?

I recently received a question from a fan of the CRM Archaeology Podcast Network over at the Archaeology Podcast Network's page (a subsidiary of DIGTECH.media). Here is the question:

 I am a senior Business Management major at the University of Central Arkansas. Recently I've found a strong interest in Anthropology and want to carry it over into my career. I've been doing research and from what I've learned from you and many other internet archaeologists my most practical job outlook is the CRM field.

Here is my question: I've decided to finish my business degree since I only have two semesters left; BUT, my school just recently created an anthro degree that only requires 33 course hours. Would it be to my advantage to stay one extra year and graduate with a double major in business management/anthro PRIOR to applying for a graduate anthropology program? My main interest is doing field work so I would think an anthro degree could be used if I ever wanted to keep quiet about having a masters and just do field work. Also since it would only take two semesters it really wouldn't be out of the way. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

The questioner's name is William and he's given permission to use his name.

Where, oh where, to begin? I guess at the very top. First, FINISH YOUR BUSINESS DEGREE. Whatever you decide, do that. A business degree is applicable to so many fields of study where archaeology is not. 

 "Recently...strong interest in Anthropology..." When did this develop? Is it something you've always thought about? For me, I've wanted to be an archaeologist since I saw the first Indiana Jones movie in the theater. Typical story of an archaeologist born in the 70s, I know, but it's a fact. Choosing a career in not just archaeology, but, CRM archaeology is a major decision. Since this field is very particular in it's lifestyle and since you can't do a whole lot EXCEPT archaeology with it, I suggest not going into it lightly. Make sure it's something you really want to do. In fact, go to a field school. Find one that has an emphasis on CRM in an area where you'd like to work. 

If anyone is considering a field school and doesn't know what to look for, let me know and I'll tell you what to look for and what questions to ask. 

For William, I'd suggest taking a field school over next summer. It might be too late, but, you need it. If you can find one that operates over the winter, then do that.

 "...anthro degree that only requires 33 course hours..." I know this can be done in two semesters, but, it's unlikely that you'll do well. That's a lot of study and most upper-level courses require research projects and a lot of writing. It'd be a good primer for grad school, that's for sure. Don't bite off more than you can chew. That being said, if you just want the degree so you can move on to bigger and better things then go for it. Much of what you'll need for CRM won't be taught in your classes. You'll learn some foundational concepts but if it's focused on Anthropology then you won't learn a lot about the science and practice of archaeology.

Either way, if you plan to go to a grad school for anthropology then I'd say get the degree and DO a field school. If you can, find a job, even if for a field season, and do some CRM archaeology. We've all worked with people that were thrown into leadership positions because they had a Master's degree but didn't actually have any field experience. They weren't the best people. Good intentions, sure, but not good leaders. Everyone is different, though, and you don't have to apply for jobs you don't think you're qualified for.

I guess my advice to you is to actually find a way to do some archaeology, preferably CRM archaeology. It'll be difficult without the degree and you might have to volunteer, but, it'll provide you with a snapshot of what the field is like. Also, don't listen to just a few people. Get some experience and listen to a lot of people. Then, make your own decision. You can talk to 20 people in CRM right now and get 20 different opinions about the field.

If you have time, listen to the Profiles in CRM podcast on the Archaeology Podcast Network. As of this writing, there are 39 interviews with CRM Archaeologists at various points in their careers. It's a lot of great advice for someone trying to make it in this business.

Finally, when you do have a graduate degree AND a business degree, give me a call. I could use someone with a business background!

Check out the audio response to this question on the CRM Archaeology Podcast - Episode 70. 

Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the field!!

#261 What Apple’s Sept Event Means for Archaeology

On September 9, 2015, Apple held their annual Fall product announcement event. They have so many product lines now that they didn’t spend the first 30 minutes talking about how awesome they are and how much money they’re making. Tim Cook, Apple CEO, just went right into new stuff. 

I’m not going to cover everything in this post - just the stuff I think is beneficial to archaeologists and archaeology. Honestly, though, if you found this post through non-archaeological means and you’re a field scientist, this stuff will still benefit you.

Apple Watch

Since it’s arrival in April, the Apple Watch (not the iWatch for some reason) has taken the wearables space by storm. It’s not as big as some of the competition and it’s not even as powerful as some, but, what it does do, it does with classic Apple style and grace.

The first iteration of the software, WatchOS 1, is quite functional. I use my Apple Watch for many of the small tasks that I used to pull my iPhone 6+ out for. Let’s be honest, the 6+ is a massive phone and pulling it out of your pocket or bag every time someone sends a Candy Crush invite can get a little annoying. Instead, I see the notification come over my Apple Watch and I either dismiss it or quickly respond to it. Quite handy. A word of warning to manners-conscious people: when you look at a silent notification that announced itself by simply lighting up the screen, others around you think that you’re looking at the time and are getting impatient. I tell people that it was a notification, not the time. We have to recondition the general public regarding watches and what they mean. They’re not just time-pieces any more.

OS2 isn’t a major upgrade since the hardware isn’t being upgraded, but, it does bring a few notable improvements.

Time Travel. On the face of the watch, you can now rotate the digital crown to advance all of the displays on the watch forward in time. This will show you upcoming calendar appointments, sunset/sunrise, and whatever else you have on the custom face that is temporally based.

Facebook Messenger. For many, Facebook Messenger has replaced text messaging. Especially for people that constantly talk to people outside of their own country and can’t text them at a reasonable cost. With WatchOS 1 messages display on the watch face but you can only dismiss them. You have to go to the phone to reply. Now, it’ll be built in and you can reply on the watch with a canned response or you can dictate to Siri for voice translation or a simple voice recording.

iTranslate. I’ve used Microsoft Translator before and iTranslate seems to do much the same thing with some really nice features. On the watch, you’ll be able to speak a phrase into the watch and see the translation on the face AND hear the translation as well. It’ll be great for all you world travelers out there, or, those that work in Boston or the deep South!

GoPro Control. This new OS will allow you to use the watch as a secondary display for certain GoPro cameras. You can set the device at a location and watch it from your watch. You can also start and stop recording. GoPro control isn’t too useful for archaeology, however, I’m thinking of other things you can do. For example, can you see the display on, and control, a pole-mounted DSLR camera for taking overviews of sites and features? That would be nice.

So, while some of these might not be directly beneficial, the technology behind them is. Other developers will come on board and do interesting things with the new features available to them and we’ll all benefit in the long run.

iPad

The iPad line got a chipset upgrade, as usual, and the prices mostly remained the same. The biggest announcement was the arrival of the iPad Pro. First, let’s get the specs out of the way:

• 12.9 inch screen (measured diagonally)
  • • 5.6 million pixels (more than a 15” MacBook Pro with Retina Display)
    • Variable refresh rate display: when things aren’t moving on the screen it slows the graphics processor down to save power)
  • A9x Processor
    • 1.8x faster than the current iPad.
    • Desktop class performance
    • Faster than 80% of the portable PCs on the market
    • Edit three screens of 4k video in iMovie with ease
  • 8MP iSight camera on the back
  • Dimensions
    • 6.9 mm thick (just a hair more than the current iPad Air 2)
    • 1.57 lbs (only 0.03 lbs more than the iPad Air 2)
  • New smart keyboard case ($169)
  • New stylus available ($99) called the Apple Pencil
    • Charges by plugging into the lightening connector on the iPad
  • Starts at $799

While I feel this iPad, and the iPad Air, are too big to carry around for survey in the hot desert sun (I prefer my iPad Mini to my iPad Air 2), this iPad is ideal for excavations and testing. With the Apple Pencil, you can draw amazing detail on profiles and overviews. Really, anything you can do on paper with a pencil, you can now do with the iPad Pro. The new processor will give it more power and developers will soon be coming out with traditionally desktop-only apps for use. This might just be a true PC-killer. I’ll update on functionality when mine gets here!

iPhone

3D touch graphic.

The iPhone 6S and 6S+ were announced and are available for pre-order on Saturday. They’ll be shipped on Sept 18, I believe.

The new iPhones both have the new A9 chip which makes them 70% faster on the CPUand 90% faster on graphics than the current models. The new M9 motion co-processor gives more accurate health and fitness data that is always on and Siri is also always listening now. Previous models required the phone to be plugged in to use “Hey Siri”. Now, though, she’s always listening.

The touch ID has been redesigned and is now much faster to respond. I have touch ID turned on for all my devices. Passcodes are easy to forget.

12MP camera!

The biggest news for me is the back camera. It’s now 12MP and shoots 4K video! Yay! I can use it for the NV BLM (10MP camera requirement)!

The new phones also have Force Touch, or, 3D touch, similar to the Apple Watch. It lets you gain a lot more functionality when tapping on your phone. You can "peek" in an app by pressing down a little bit harder than normal. If you hold long enough the app will "pop" into place. Pretty slick and I can see many applications for archaeology. For example, having a dynamic site map where you can force touch artifacts and features to get more info.

Pricing is the same as it’s been for years with the 16GB, 64GB, and 128GB pricing at 199-299-399 for the 6S and 299-399-499 for the 6S+.

So, do you NEED to upgrade? Well, that depends on use. If you’re devices are doing what they need to do, then no. If you have an older device then you might want to just because apps will stop working at some point on older devices.

If you do replace your old iPad or iPhone, do the responsible thing and sell it to Gazelle. They’ll either refurbish it and resell it or they’ll responsibly destroy and recycle it. And, you’ll get a few dollars in your pocket. They even pay for shipping.

Thanks for reading and I’ll see you in the field!!

#260 The Journey Continues - #DayofArch 2015

This is my Day of Archaeology 2015 post. Here are my past posts:

View fullsize

2014: More Companies, More Changes

2013: DayofArch2013: Continuing Changes

2012: Day of Archaeology 2012

2011: Part 1 and Part 2

Thanks again to the organizers for putting this on. Hopefully CRM in the US will start to have a bigger presence as the years roll on. For now, though, it's just a few of us. Here's the Day of Archaeology Page

2014

Last year I had been part of the formation of a new company, Field Tech Designs, that was set up to create a tablet application for CRM and beyond. We went quite far with the developers on that, but, in November my backer and business partner backed out. I guess the cost and pace of app development was a bit too much. Who knows. Either way, I've moved on and I have a new collaboration with the Center for Digital Archaeology and they are making something that will be great when it comes out! More on that later.

I also mentioned the podcast in last year's post. Well, as of December, 2014, I started the Archaeology Podcast Network with a fellow podcaster, Tristan Boyle of the Anarchaeologist Podcast. Together, we've built the APN into quite the little network with a total of seven shows right now and more on the way. We're getting around 7000 downloads a month across the network and that number keeps rising. Creating podcasts for people to learn from and enjoy has really been the highlight of my archaeology career. I have a real passion for teaching and outreach and this is my creative outlet for that. Go check out the APN if you're interested and don't forget to leave some feedback on our iTunes page.

Finally, I mentioned that my book had just come out from Left Coast Press. The Field Archaeologist's Survival Guide did better than I expected for the first year, given the price and the small size of this field. My first royalties check came just in June and I took my wife out for a nice McDonald's dinner. Not super-sized, of course; I mean, it was no Harry Potter. All kidding aside, I knew I wouldn't make back what I put into the book. Our field just isn't big enough. That's not why I wrote it or why I went with a publisher. I just wanted the info to be out there and I thought it was a book that could help some people. I've achieved that goal, I think.

2015

This year has been the year of DIGTECH! After two years of networking, proposal losing, small jobs, and living of the knitting income of my wife, I've got $400k in work this year and as of the Day of Archaeology I've paid out over $60,000 in payroll! That's a big deal for me. Not only have I had the satisfaction of winning a few contracts and getting to work on them, more importantly, I've been able to hire and support a few friends of mine and some new friends. That's the biggest satisfaction for me. When I think about my friends receiving a paycheck that says, "DIGTECH" on it and using that money to support and feed their families, I feel very honored and humbled. Being an employer is an awesome responsibility. I heard someone say once that you'll know you're a business owner when you go to sleep at night worrying about payroll. That's certainly the truth!

For this year's event I'm in the middle, well really the beginning, of a 30,000 acre survey. I've got four employees with three more coming in October. I just finished a proposal that I think this year's jobs will get me, too. I haven't really had the past performance to win much in the last few years, but, these two jobs should change everything.

We're recording fully digitally in the field, too. There are some issues with the system I'm using, but, we're adjusting and moving on. In fact, I talked about some of this at the San Diego Archaeological Society's monthly meeting on July 25th. It's the first time I've been invited to speak somewhere about these issues and it was a huge honor. 

2016

I'm hoping that I'll have something really interesting to write about in 2016. Just a few weeks ago I moved on a project I've been thinking about for several years now. I've got people here that want to help out with it, knowing that it won't pay right now, but, will in the future, and they're willing to put in the time. We'll see. We've just started and I love the energy they have here in the beginning. I just hope that enthusiasm sticks around.

My Day

I guess I'll briefly talk about my actual day for a minute. Since this is a small company, I'm usually out in the field with the crew. If we go to one part of the project area we leave at 0530. For the more distant part we leave at 0415. That's to avoid much of the Mojave desert heat that we have to deal with. Leaving at 0415 gets us home by 1245. That's not too bad. Of course, that means dinner at 2pm and bed at 8pm, but, it's better than working in 105+ F. On the long drive days we spend 1:45 just getting to the project area. Then, we survey for two hours, take lunch around 0845, survey another two hours, and, go home. It feels like a really short day. 

The survey on the long drives is working out, though. We have a certain number of acres we're trying to hit every day and there isn't much out there in that part of the project. So, we cover a lot of ground in that short four hours. Luckily, the dense parts of the project, for archaeology that is, are near town.

That's it for this year. I hope to have an even better year next year and have a lot more to talk about.

Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the field!!

#259 Social Media Research

Hey everyone...I'm passing along a research study from a student in the Netherlands that is do a master's thesis on the use of blogs and social media in making archaeology accessible to the public. Fleur Schinning is wanting to know some demographics and some thoughts about the blog you're reading now. The questions, most anyway, are designed to ask you about THIS blog. So, answer honestly!

I'm chairing a session on social media and archaeology at the EAA in Glasgow this September and I've chair the Blogging Archaeology session at the SAAs for the past several years. I'm very interested in social media and it's power to make archaeology more widely understood by the public and to educate the public and professionals alike.

So, help Fleur out and take the survey. There is a link here: http://goo.gl/forms/z3BAUTyYUL

If you want to see the questions first, there in THIS PDF.

Thanks for helping out and hopefully making blogging more effective and more productive.

One more thing...I haven't been on here much because most of my efforts go into the Archaeology Podcast Network. If you haven't checked it out, head over to the website and give it a listen. We have seven shows and more on the way.

Also, if you're in the San Diego area on July 25 come be and hear me talk about digital field archaeology in CRM at the monthly meeting of the San Diego Archaeological Society. The talk is at 8pm at the Los Penasquitos Ranch House: 12350 Black Mountain Rd., San Diego, CA 92129.

Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the field!!

#258 Passion and Dedication

I had called this the Passion of Christ(opher) originally. However, I realized that I shouldn't draw parallels to the son of a god when I am, in fact, a god myself. Ha!

I can be pretty intense. Some people that know me would say I'm a passionless robot and others would say I'm hot-headed and intense. There isn't really an in-between with me. Such is life. I'm working on swinging more to the middle, but, it's apparently not in my nature.

Recently, I had an interaction with a good friend that demonstrated just how clueless I am to my particular personality quirks. In most relationships I have (friendly and otherwise) I'm either all or nothing. I'm like that with much of what I do. I don't do much of anything half-assed. I either do it, or, I don't. So, when I meet someone that I really click with and am on the same page with on a lot of topics I want to keep that interaction going. It's difficult to find, actually. However, my version of friendship can be, as I said above, too intense and some people simply aren't prepared for it.

Why am I putting this on the blog? Because I need a couple people with me right now that are the same way. I've got some projects that I want to do that simply don't have funding. They are necessary and needed in the field of archaeology (and beyond in some cases) but they are difficult to set up and I just don't have the money. I also don't have the time or ability to do it on my own. 

What I need is one, maybe two, people that have similar drive and passion for these projects and can see the future potential and possibilities. What I need are people that don't tell me, "I don't have time", or, "I had something else to do, I'll get to it later". I need people that put aside other things to get these things done. I need people that see this as one of the big things they do in their lives and are more concerned with how many people will be helped by what we produce than what happens on Game of Thrones.

Are you that person? What sorts of qualities does this person have? First, they probably watch little TV. They're way too engaged with the world and their own projects to afford too much TV-watching time. This person also has a thirst and passion for knowledge. Are you constantly reading journals or online articles? Do you repost IFLS on Facebook all the time, but, actually READ the articles and not just the headlines? Do you know what PLOS even stands for? Finally, this person has a passion for communicating archaeology and improving working conditions across the board for archaeologists.

This is a tall order, I know. I've really only ever met two people like this in my life. One I'm not in touch with anymore and the other, well, has other things on their mind and might not be ready for something like this. Not sure yet.

Oh, and this person, or people, has at least an MA/MS or is in a graduate program. I know a graduate degree doesn't make you smarter but in this case it tells me a lot about you. It says to me that you believe in the field enough to want todo something drastic to move up and make a difference. It tells me that you follow through with your ambitions rather than saying, "next year I'll go to grad school" and never actually going. That's what I'm looking for. Honestly, even if you dropped out of your program for reasons relating to the fit or goals of the program, then that's OK. I respect people that can back out of a bid decisions rather than continue in something that's just not right and will lead to nothing.

If you want to know more and actually meet the qualifications above and are willing to put in a lot of hard work for very little early return but a high long term return, let me know. If you'd rather skate through life and let others do the hard work, then, this message will self-destruct in five seconds. Good day to you.

Sorry to be harsh and abrasive, but, I'm tired of dancing around these projects and I want to see at least one thing go live by the start of the next field season.

Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the field!!

#257 Tub Water

How many projects have you been on where the project manager or the crew chief filled your crew water jug with water from the bathtub in the hotel room? It's certainly a cheap way to get water for your crew, that's for sure. But, do you like drinking tub water? How much would it cost to get good, filtered, water every day? What does it say about the crew chief when they make sacrifices like that? What does it say about the company? How does it make you feel as a field technician. Let's dive into this.

The Cost of Filtered Water

In many areas of the country there are water machines where you can get filtered water. They're often in grocery stores. I've seen a gallon cost anywhere from 39 to 45 cents. Let's just say it's 50 cents to cover all the possibilities. If you have a crew of four people they might drink five gallons in about three days. Often, crew members will start the day with their own water and fill up during the day. if they drink the 5 gallons in three days, then, on a 10-day session you'll fill the water jug three, maybe four, times. Let's say four. That would be 20 gallons (5 gal x 4 times). At 50 cents a gallon, that's $10 per rotation for water for a four-person crew. 

A field season could last 9 months (18, 10-day rotations). That would mean you'd spend $360 per field season for a four person crew. If you are running large projects and have maybe four crews, that's $1,440 per year. Really??  CRM firms waste that much money just thinking about starting a project.

Considering it another way, a $150,000 project (the kind that might have four crews) would use only 0.96% of the budget IF they went nine months. A project of that size with four crews would probably only last a few months, dropping the percentage even lower.

What Kind of Crew Chief Uses Tub Water

I'd be willing to bet that some people reading this have never considered the impact of tub water on crew health and moral. That's understandable. If no one has ever said something to you, then, you might not have thought about it. It's time to think about it.

Crew moral is an easy thing to improve if you're mindful of their needs and are always thinking ahead. You need to be always thinking about the budget too, of course. When the leadership thinks of spending money on water and ice they will often come to the conclusion that it's too expensive. This is while sitting at the gas station with four vehicles and 20 people all getting snacks in the morning. That 30 minute stop for gas doesn't come cheap. Let's assume that the minimum billable rate for a field technician is $55. I've seen it higher and I've seen it lower. If you've got 16 crew members and four crew chiefs at the gas station for 30 minutes then the cost, assuming the crew chiefs are at, let's say $65 per hour, would be $570. You probably stop for gas at least twice in a 10-day session - more if you have a long commute. That's $1,140 just for people standing there! Next time you'll think twice when deciding whether to fill up after work with JUST the crew chiefs.

Don't even get me started on the cost of tire changes versus just buying 10-ply tires.

This MUST be the water Crew Chief's think they're getting you.

It's the little things, like buying filtered water, that don't cost much but that show the crew that you care about them. That will not only improve moral, but, it could save someone's life too. I know people that won't drink the water in the jugs because they think it's tub water. That could get dangerous really fast.

What Do You Think?

Am I off the rails on this one? Does anyone really care? What brought this on, anyway? I'll tell you.

So, I'm running a large project in the hot SoCal desert right now. The people on my crew are good friends of mine. One of them knows me better than probably 99% of all people I've ever known. We were at the truck for break one day and two of us were filling our water bladders for our backpacks. I don't remember exactly what was said, but, I ask her if she was going to fill up or whether she needed any water. She said something about not wanting tub water and that she doesn't drink the local water. Who does? It's disgusting. I told her it was filtered water and that I fill it almost daily before work. She had no idea! Even though I tend to get the best things I can, she just assumed it was water from the bathtub because that's all she's ever known from a crew chief. That makes me sad.

So, go the extra mile and give your crew some good water. They deserve it and it doesn't cost that much. If your company won't expense it then do it yourself. You owe it to your crew. Also, find another job if the company thinks it's an expense they can't afford.

SAY NO TO TUB WATER!!

Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the field!!