A collection of longer, more in-depth posts representing some of my better writing
Skills for Aspiring Engineering Directors
Prevailing wisdom suggests that within the ranks of management, despite their proximity on most career ladders, the roles of a manager and a director are meaningfully different. Just as it’s difficult to appreciate the responsibilities of…
Recounting a 14-Year Career in Software, Part V
Previously: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV. This final entry covers my time at Counsyl which has its own retrospective as well. As usual, I will bold major lessons learned. Assimilation vs. Differentiation My engagement with the folks at…
Recounting a 14-Year Career in Software, Part IV
Previous entries: Part I, Part II, Part III. This part covers my time at Square, which I also wrote a retrospective about. Bold sentences indicate learnings or insights gleaned. Start with the Unscalable Y Combinator famously gives this advice:…
Recounting a 14-Year Career in Software, Part III
Previous entries: Part I and Part II. I will continue to bold statements which come from that specific work experience. MTV It’s testament to Google’s technical DNA and stellar reputation that the company remains a very desirable work…
Recounting a 14-Year Career in Software, Part II
Part I is available here. As before, I’ll bold insights and lessons I’ve picked up from those experiences. A Scrum in Social Networks I joined Tagged in the beginning of 2008. It billed itself as an up-and-coming social network, at a…
Recounting a 14-Year Career in Software, Part I
A couple of months back, someone asked me about my career in software development and the various lessons along the way. I have relayed individual stories in the past, but I never got around to writing it down in full. Here is one such attempt.…
Year in Review — 2017
Man, this has been a rough year for the world. 2016 foreshadowed some of what could happen this year, but a lot of other unexpected shit went down too, mostly for the worse. In contrast, events in my own life have moved in a positive direction,…
Principle of Singular Variability
Change is the only constant. Often misattributed to Heraclitus Dealing with change is an important skill in life. Whether it’s your career path, the requirements of your current project, or just something unexpected interrupting your…
The Case for a Single 27″ 4K Work Monitor
At home, I’ve had a 34″, 21:9-screen-aspect-ratio ultra-wide monitor for about 18 months now. It’s attached to a movies and gaming PC, and that expansive screen real estate works very well, both to fill up the periphery with…
Providing Leadership Advice
A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to participate in a panel of engineering managers and directors to chat about a few of the details and nuances of our jobs. It was set up by Plato, a startup that latched onto this idea that people management…