How Strongly I Recommend It: 9/10 How Likely I Will Gift It: 8/10 The Review & Summary It's a book that has gained a permanent place on my table. I'll be coming back to this book regularly to remind myself of the principles of stoicism when I feel down or stressed. It's a good book because it's short, actionable,...
Recently, Ava wrote this post. I've been thinking about something similar for a while. Here are my added thoughts (read Ava’s post first for the complete picture). The personalities we build always have masks, either in real life or online. AI didn’t change it; it made it easier. I think the trust was always...
I wrote this post in May 2022. Now using AI is common, I stand by it more than ever. Product shouldn't be left to product managers. Reply via email | Reply via Mastodon | Comment
As an engineering manager, I have various conversations and make decisions about compensation changes after promotions and annual reviews. People are sometimes satisfied with decisions; sometimes not. Discontent is higher when they believe they have exceeded expectations but have not received sufficient reward....
Most strong emotions, such as fear, are caused by uncertainty and the unknown. Once trained, managing these emotions becomes simple (not easy). Training takes effort and time. Yet the steady one always heads to the chaos, knowing what to expect and finding an easier way out. Acknowledging emotions (rather than...
How the world is a matter of perception. The way to achieving what we want lies on how we look at what's in front of us. A small success may blind us or display the truth with full-blown reality; a tiny problem might cause unnecessarily swirling emotions or shows a new way to resolve—all matter of perception. An...
Three simple questions to collect feedback when you don't know what to ask: What should X (I, he/she/they) start doing? Why? What should X (I, he/she/they) stop doing? Why? What should X (I, he/she/they) continue doing? Why? Be aware that you're pushing the responsibility for thinking to the person receiving the...
Most of the incidents have mitigation actions and follow-up fixes applied to the system. They focus on addressing the root cause. Do these actions mean the organization/team/systems had learned from the issue? No. If the root cause is addressed and a few more tests are added to ensure the system won't fail for the...
When you deal with "us vs. them" conflicts, listen to the people but do not trust their judgment. The conflict will create unconscious bias toward the other side. Gather facts and meet with individuals to understand their problems and perceptions. Drill down into the root problem: often, it's an unaddressed need of...
Tools differ when you're not managing Individual Contributors anymore Skip-level 1:1s Coaching Mentoring Hand-holding Asking Questions (collect first) Constant feedback Related Note(s): Coaching mindset is even more crucial when managing managers than ICs; Positive reinforcement is a much better tool to guide...
Great engineering managers have strong debugging skills and know how to apply them to non-technical problems. They pursue 'the why' of the problem before jumping to conclusions. They seek the underlying issue and don't stop at half-baked ideas. When managers skip this debugging mindset and jump to conclusions, they...
Debugging a dysfunctional team includes seven steps: Form a hypothesis Check the data Observe the team Ask Questions Check The Team Dynamics Jump In To Help Be Curious Related Note(s): You need to ask questions with genuine curiosity rather than interrogating. Making a team functional is the heart of the management...
