TL;DR style notes from articles I read today.

Making time for the good stuff

• When you’re really busy, it is easy to get into reactive mode. It makes you feel productive. But ensure a long term proactive focus on achieving significant goals too.
• Realize that your biggest potential impact comes from doing creative work that sets up future success.
• Creativity needs time and space in your schedule.
• Avoid interruptions & repeated context switching. Block 2-3 hour slots of time for deep work.
• Make a note of any idea or inspiration that strikes you right when it does. If you can’t spend some time exploring it at right away, add enough context to be able to pick it up later.

Full post here, 5 mins read

Conquering impostor syndrome

• Little wins are by far the most effective way to gain momentum that can stave off impostor syndrome.
• Submit a code fix even if it's tiny. Tweak the refactor code. Do code reviews - they are a good way to think about how you would have completed a task without needing to complete it. 
• Bug filing also gets you thinking about ways a project can be improved, which may nudge your mind into other ways to make the project better.
• Commit to accomplishing a task in front of your team.
• Talk to your manager & colleagues when you feel stuck or not good enough. They will help you find a starting point to dive into coding.
• Do a pair programming session to help yourself find the motivation to start even if you are feeling like an impostor.

Full post here, 6 mins read

Why all engineers must understand management: the view from both ladders


• Growing in technical & management ladders require different skill sets.
• You need to understand technical matters to manage a technical team well. Similarly, an effective engineer who wants to grow in a technical team needs to understand management too.
• You need management skills for your career growth as an individual contributor (IC).
• When you grow in an IC role, you need these management skills to help you effectively collaborate with people on and outside your team, influence others as well as coach and mentor other engineers. 
• Understand why & how some processes in your company designed, executed and evaluated - for ex: recruitment or performance management process - to get an idea of how management systems work. 


Full post here, 9 mins read

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