ANCEDOTES ABOUT INSTRUCTORS

MCSE boot camp instructors are special people. I have met many of them, most of them extremely competent, some of them absolutely brilliant and a few real geniuses. But I have always been a bit surprised how rare it is to find that really rare mix of personality and brilliance.
Good MCSE instructors all develop an almost cult like following. The loyalty students show to an instructor they admire and respect rivals madonna worshipers.
I really liked the instructor who was teaching a night class and walked through the outer door of the school yelling TURN TO PAGE 232. TONIGHTS LESSON IS ON.... before he was even in the classroom, he was teaching. He was a guru too. He once had an experienced network engineer in his class who believed his Exchange server was secure. In ten minutes he was showing the guy his users names and passwords in plain english having drilled into the server with header info from an email. Like I said, the guy was a guru, and his students loved him, but he didn't have the personality to connect with his students on a human level.
I really liked a young instructor I knew who simply didn't realize how smart he was. His ability to process new information and reach the correct conclusions (the only logical conclusions) was phenomenal. He also had a cult like following, but he too, could not connect with his students on a human level.
There is an instructor I'll call Plain ol Joe (his name really is Joe) Joe is a "regular guy", very casual and relaxed. He could connect with anybody. And he is smart as an instructor. Very smart. He students will follow him for years to take the next class they want from him. Joe is in that rare group of instructors who have both brilliance and personality in the classroom.
My all time favorite instructor is Robert. More reserved than Joe and more professional in demeanor, Robert nevertheless has the knack for never letting a student feel dumb or insecure in his level of understanding of the subject matter at hand. (something many gurus lack). If a student asks a question that has already been answered, Roberts response makes the student feel as if the question is appropriate and timely. On occassion, an instructor will have a student who is very smart - perhaps as smart as the instructor himself. I have seen this lead to verbal duels and the game of one upmanship as massive egos collide. That has never happened to Robert, could never happen to Robert. His ego simple doesn't run that way and no one could fail to recognize that. Robert was born to teach. He often teaches advanced classes to very competent engineers and he is always, always, appreciated.
Instructors are each unique, special people. I have met some who should have been driving tractor trailers, instead of sports cars, so they would have room to carry their massive egos around. I have met some whose brilliance moved them a little too far from the real world. As a group, I find them to be good people who do a difficult job very well.
Ok, i do have one "bad instructor" story. He was a UNIX guru. He ran a server farm with 2400 servers for BIG AEROSPACE. Dude must have been smart. But could not even dress himself appropriately. Came to school one day with one pantleg tucked into his sock, the back of his shirt not tucked in, the collar upturned, and his hair uncombed. No wonder his nick name was Mad Jack. lol