Companies rise and fall. Nothing is forever. This isn’t a cliché. The largest companies in the world gave way to other companies. Giants have gone bankrupt. It’s a fact of life. What I find extremely frustrating is when great companies fall over easily foreseeable errors. When the red flags were waving, the alarm bells wentContinue reading “Will We Ever Learn”
Category Archives: Management
With a Little Help…
It is with great pleasure I bring to you my first guest post. This one was written by Igor Wojda. Igor is a Senior Android Developer I’ve had the opportunity to discuss this blog with. We started discussing life optimisations, and he shared with me a recent optimisation he made to his life. I amContinue reading “With a Little Help…”
Agile? We Are Doing It Wrong
Whatever your line of work, I’m sure you noticed companies constantly want to earn more. The intuitive way to earn more is to work faster. Produce more in less time, and you earn more for the same time window, right? As a contractor, I’ve worked with many companies of varying sizes. From start-ups to scale-upsContinue reading “Agile? We Are Doing It Wrong”
On A Positive Note
I once read somewhere that smiles (much like yawns!) are contagious. I found that observation interesting. I had to see it for myself. I started consciously smiling to people. What do you know. It works. It gets better. It seems that smiling actually makes you happier. So by spreading smiles, you’re actually making everyone aroundContinue reading “On A Positive Note”
I Guess This is Obvious
A lot of the decisions I make rely on assumptions. It’s so much easier to work with assumptions than to validate every bit of information that is factored into a decision. It can also prove to be a terrible mistake. Assumptions are risky shortcuts. What if your assumption was correct at some point in time,Continue reading “I Guess This is Obvious”
Someone Will Do It
There is always a chore waiting for me. For every chore I complete, a couple of new ones line up. Some of these chores are team chores. By team chores I mean anyone can pick them up. At home, that could be doing the dishes or the laundry. At work, it could be creating ticketsContinue reading “Someone Will Do It”
Don’t Go Breaking My Heart
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I’m a software developer. If you aren’t one, you’d probably imagine us as sitting in a dark corner in front of a bright screen, typing away. But really, I’d imagine pretty much like any other professionals, we spend a lot of time working with people. WorkingContinue reading “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart”
Promotion Is Not A Bonus
I work with managers of varying levels on a daily basis. CEOs, CTOs, team leads – I’ve worked with them all. One emerging pattern I noticed is that many of them are simply terrible managers. They may have been very good at their previous role. They do not seem to be half as good atContinue reading “Promotion Is Not A Bonus”
It’s All Or Nothing, Part 2
Every once in a while, it’s time to get a raise. With inflation, and a growing skill set, it makes sense. As a contractor, I usually stick to one of two opportunities to secure a rate increase. I would ask for a higher rate when assigned greater responsibility. I would also increase my rate whenContinue reading “It’s All Or Nothing, Part 2”
You’re Wrong
I’m a critical person. I’m also a perfectionist. While this doesn’t mean I don’t make mistakes, it does mean I have an urge to fix mistakes when I see them. One common place to find mistakes on is people’s posts, tweets and status updates. I used to correct them in a comment. I didn’t giveContinue reading “You’re Wrong”
Optimising My Life 