FPL Draft – Gameweek 10 Waiver Wire Pickups

Gameweek 10 of the Premier League season is just around the corner. It’s time to check those waiver wires for possible pickups. My pickups of the week are under 45% owned in all Fantrax Togga leagues.

Forwards

Pick 1
Neal Maupay – Brighton – 39% Owned – Ownership Trend -27.6%
A regular in the Brighton attack throughout this season. Maupay has a relatively easy couple of fixtures, with two home games against Everton and Norwich. So could be handy if you need someone to plugin this week. However, after the Norwich fixture, Brighton faces @Man Utd, Leicester, and @Liverpool.
Pick 2
Allan Saint-Maximum – Newcastle – 26% Owned – Ownership Trend -40%
Saint-Maximum has started the last two games for the Magpies and has scored well despite tough matches against Man Utd and Chelsea. With Newcastle offering very little in the attack, Saint-Maximum may have played himself into a starting role. Newcastle has a fairly decent run of matches coming up with games against; Wolves, @West Ham, Bournemouth, and @Villa. All very win-able matches.
Pick 3
Theo Walcott – Everton – 15% Owned – Ownership Trend +15%
Walcott was back with a bang after missing time with a concussion. Whilst Theo is still a shadow of his former self, he may offer some upside with some easier fixtures on the horizon. @Brighton, Spurs, @Southampton, and Norwich

Midfielders

Pick 1
Andreas Pereira – Man Utd – 17% Owned – Ownership Trend +0.3%
Averaging around 2 Shot per game, Pereira may offer some upside in a Man Utd team that has the easiest run of fixtures over the next 5 game weeks. @Norwich, @Bournemouth, Brighton, @Sheff Utd, and Villa.
Pick 2
Harvey Barnes – Leicester – 39% Owned – Ownership Trend +6.3%
It’s always good to try and grab players in an ever-improving team. Barnes has been getting some assists over the past few game weeks and may become a regular in the Leicester midfield.
Pick 3
Tom Cleverley – Watford – 40% Owned – Ownership Trend -10%
Even though I’ve personally wanted nothing to do with anyone even remotely associated with Watford this season Cleverley could be an OK option if you are in a pinch.
Playing Bournemouth, @Norwich, Burnley @Southampton in their next 5 games.

Defense

Pick 1
Kurt Zouma – Chelsea – 35% Owned – Ownership Trend -31.5%
If you are looking for a part of an improving Chelsea team, Zouma may be your last option. Starting the last two games he could become a regular in a decent looking, young Chelsea side.
Pick 2
Jack OConnell – Sheff Utd – 41% Owned – Ownership Trend -8.8%
Sheffield is looking very strong at the back. Up and coming games don’t look too bad. @West Ham United, Burnley @Spurs and Man Utd. OConnell may still be available in your league, grab some of Sheffield steel before it’s too late.
Pick 3
Max Aarons – Norwich – 15% Owned – Ownership Trend -9.7%
Norwich has been shipping goals this season. However, they looked much improved in game week 8, albeit against a poor Bournemouth performance. Aarons is a regular feature in the Norwich attack and can offer some attacking upside. Steer clear of the Norwich full-backs!!

Keepers (Streamers)

In case you are in need of a better option than your starting Keeper this game week, here are my top streaming options.

Roberto Jimenez – West Ham – 9% Owned
vs Sheff Utd (H)
Ben Foster – Watford – 33% Owned
vs Bournemouth (H)
Martin Dubravka – Newcastle – 27% Owned
vs Wolves (H)

 

Player Data from: https://www.fantrax.com/
Strength of schedule data from: https://fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/

EP8 – Expect The Unexpected

In episode eight of The VCDX Podcast, we’ll be hearing from our special guest about their recent VCDX defense experience and how it was actually quite a bit different from the experience they were expecting.

News & Updates

Congratulations to the 2 new VCDX’s:

Up and coming VCDX Workshops

Interview Notes & Links

This week’s special guest is Veronica Davis (VCDX #280)

Common VCDX Mistakes

  • “That was planned for phase 2 of this project” or “That was out of scope for this projcet”

Q&A

AS always, if you have any questions you want answering on the Podcast, please send them to me via the two options below:

I’m always looking for feedback and ways to improve the podcast, so please, contact me with any thoughts and feedback you might have. If you enjoyed this episode, please remember to subscribe (using the links below) and let others know about it on social media.

Why Datrium’s Automatrix Platform Is “Too Good To Be True!”

During my time at Datrium, I’ve been hearing more and more CIO’s and Head’s of IT say the following line whilst our Sales teams are pitching the Datrium Automatrix Platform.

This sounds too good to be true!

The reason why Automatrix is classed as “too good to be true” is because of what we as an IT industry have become accustomed to. We accept and expect IT systems to be complex to manage, maintain and require training to operate. It’s a given that you will need to use multiple vendor solutions in order to meet your business requirements.

So when a solution is presented to us that contradicts our many years of IT experience, we immediately pass it off as “too good to be true”, even if in fact, it is true!

Take for example VMware. We all know and love VMware and their products. However, it didn’t always use to be this way. Back in the early early days of VMware, adoption of VMware Server, as it was called then, was almost limited to use as a Disaster Recovery option as it wasn’t deemed something that could be used in production. Not because it wasn’t production-ready, but because it was “too good to be true” and no one believed that it could do what VMware said it could do.

It’s frustrating when you know first-hand how good something is, but other people don’t seem to want to listen to what you are telling them, especially when you know that they will benefit from it.

I recently read a fantastic article from James Clear; Why Don’t Facts Change Our Minds and I think much of what James talks about in his article relates to what I am seeing within the industry.

Truth and accuracy are not the only things that matter to the human mind. Humans also seem to have a deep desire to belong. Humans are herd animals. We want to fit in, to bond with others, and to earn the respect and approval of our peers. We don’t always believe things because they are correct. Sometimes we believe things because they make us look good to the people we care about.

If a brain anticipates that it will be rewarded for adopting a particular belief, it’s perfectly happy to do so, and doesn’t much care where the reward comes from — whether it’s pragmatic (better outcomes resulting from better decisions), social (better treatment from one’s peers), or some mix of the two.”

I think because of what James talks about, IT folk find it difficult to go against the status quo, even if a new product can be highly beneficial to a business. And I get it. We all want to fit in and be accepted by others, even if it holds many of us back.

its-better-to-walk-alone-than-with-a-crowd-going-in-the-wrong-direction

Summary

During my time in the industry, I’ve actually found that going against the crowd, whilst as difficult as it is, can often bring us the most success. Not everything works out, but when it does, it’s massive and usually a game-changer for you and your company.

So if you see/hear something that you think “This is too good to be true!”, don’t just push it aside. It could actually be true and you are going miss out on all of the value you will get from it. Take the pragmatic approach. Dig deeper. This could be a diamond in the rough.

Datrium is not “too good to be true!”. It is actually true! We can prove it. If you’ll let us of course.

Here are some fun (non-IT) examples of where I wished I had taken the pragmatic approach rather than listening to my social circles.

  • Cold Brew Coffee – Growing up in England, Coffee was always hot. If it was cold, you’d pour it away. Now I can’t get enough of the stuff!
  • Tempur-Pedic Mattress – Quite possibly one of the best purchases I ever made. They cost an arm and a leg, but OMG it’s soo comfortable. Even though TV commercials told me how good they were, I thought they were “Too good to be true”. Then I had a hotel room with one in and I’ve never looked back.
  • Yeti Tumbler – How good can a cup really be? Do I really need my drink to be kept cold/hot? I thought not. I got one as a gift for my birthday and I’ve pretty much used it every day since. I’ve even brought one for other people I know who’d love it, but like me, thought it was “Too good to be true”.

 

 

 

 

EP7 – If At First You Don’t Succeed

In episode seven of The VCDX Podcast, we’ll be offering some advice on ways to recover from failing your latest VCDX certification attempt.

News & Updates

Interview Notes & Links

  • This week’s special guest is Mike Brown (VCDX #71)

Q&A

AS always, if you have any questions you want answering on the Podcast, please send them to me via the two options below:

I’m always looking for feedback and ways to improve the podcast, so please, contact me with any thoughts and feedback you might have. If you enjoyed this episode, please remember to subscribe (using the links below) and let others know about it on social media.

EP6 – Neon Pens At The Ready

In episode six of The VCDX Podcast, we’ll be discussing everything VCDX related that we can expect to see at VMworld 2019 which is just around the corner. And in our guest interview, I’ll be finding out about a new Lightboard series that’s aimed to help you prepare for your VCDX.

News & Updates

  • This week’s special guest was Karl Childs
  • There will be a VCDX Workshop just before VMworld US on Sunday, August 25th. Register here for the VCDX Workshop
  • There will be a VCDX Panel session during VMworld US in the Certifications area – Preparing for Your VCDX: What You Need to Know [EDU3683U] – Wednesday, August 28, 11:00 AM – 11:45 AM

Interview Notes & Links

Q&A

If you have any questions you want answering, please send them to me via the two options below:

I’m always looking for feedback and ways to improve the podcast, so please, contact me with any thoughts and feedback you might have. If you enjoyed this episode, please remember to Subscribe (using the links below) and let others know about it on social media.

Why I’ve Hardly Blogged Over The Past Year, And It’s All Datrium’s Fault!

Keeping It SimpleLately, I’ve had a few people ask me “How come you aren’t blogging much anymore?”  My typical response to that question is usually “I’ve not really had much to post about!” Which, when I think about it, really doesn’t make sense. I joined Datrium a year ago, and since joining, it’s been a near-vertical learning curve, working on some ground-breaking technologies. So why don’t I feel like I have anything to blog about?

Well, over the past 10 years, my main reason for blogging was to share knowledge with others around, usually, complex technical issues and configurations. Some examples from the past few years:

So, this leads me to why I’ve not really posted much since joining at Datrium.

Why blame Datrium?

Read the rest of this entry »

EP5 – Slacking Is Encouraged

In episode five of The VCDX Podcast, I’ll be chatting to my special guest about the VCDX Prep Slack Team, finding out what it is and how you can use it to help yourself or others prepare for their VCDX.

News & Updates

There will be a VCDX Workshop at the Indianapolis VMUG on Tuesday, July 16th. Register here for the Indy VMUG

Interview Notes & Links

Common VCDX Mistakes

  • There are too many constraints in some VCDX designs, which limits the panelist’s ability to score the candidate in certain areas.
  • Provided by VCDX panelist Paul McSharry

Q&A

If you have any questions you want answering, please send them to me via the two options below:

I’m always looking for feedback and ways to improve the podcast, so please, contact me with any thoughts and feedback you might have. If you enjoyed this episode, please remember to Subscribe (using the links below) and let others know about it on social media.

EP4 – So Many New VCDX’s!

In episode four of The VCDX Podcast, we recognize the newly crowned VCDX’s and I’ll be chatting to my special guest about their VCDX defense experience. What things went well, and what didn’t go so well.

News & Updates

Congratulations to the 5 new VCDX’s:

  • #279 – Dmitri Tanurkov (NV)
  • #280 – Veronica Sherin David (NV)
  • #281 – Chris Porter (DCV)
  • #282 – Syed Adeel Qamar (NV)
  • #283 – Fouad EL Akkad (DCV)

And a special congratulations to Jeffrey Kusters #252 – who got his second VCDX (NV).  You can see the full list of VCDX’s on the VCDX Directory

There will be a VCDX Workshop at the Indianapolis VMUG on July 16th. Register for the Indy VMUG

Interview Notes & Links

  • This week’s special guest is Chris Porter
  • Toggl – Time tracking software Chris used in his defense prep

Q&A

If you have any questions you want answering, please send them to me via the two options below:

I’m always looking for feedback and ways to improve the podcast, so please, contact me with any thoughts and feedback you might have. If you enjoyed this episode, please remember to Subscribe (using the links below) and let others know about it on social media.

EP3 – Always Make Time For Game Of Thrones!

In episode three of The VCDX Podcast, we focus our attention towards preparing for the VCDX defense. How can we find ways to make time in both our busy work and personal lives and then make the most of that limited time we have?

Interview Notes & Links

Common VCDX Mistakes Links

If you have any questions you want answering, please send them to me via the two options below:

I’m always looking for feedback and ways to improve the podcast, so please, contact me with any thoughts and feedback you might have. If you enjoyed this episode, please remember to Subscribe (using the links below) and let others know about it on social media.

EP2 – Removing The Stress From The VCDX Defense

In episode two, we focus mostly on the VCDX Workshop. What the VCDX Workshop is, who should attend and how they can benefit.

News & Updates Links

Interview Notes & Links

If you have any questions you want answering, please send them to me via the two options below:

I’m always looking for feedback and way’s to improve the podcast, so please, contact me with any thoughts and feedback you might have. If you enjoy the podcast, please remember to Subscribe and let others know on social media.