Stop Solving Problems for Your Development Team!
Thriving Technologist
Are you helping or holding your team back? In this episode, I explore why sharing technical answers with your development team might not be the best way to help them grow. Instead, learn how to use resourceful questions to empower your team members to think critically, solve problems independently, and build long-term confidence. This coaching strategy is rooted in co-active coaching principles and can transform how you mentor junior developers or lead your software team. Grow Faster in Your Tech Career: Join the Thriving Tech Community: As a tech lead, manager, or mentor, it’s natural to...
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Can Employees REALLY Set Boundaries With Managers?
Thriving Technologist
Ever had a manager who expects you to be Superman? No matter what you do, they keep asking for "more, more, more." Earlier in my tech career, I thought it was my manager's fault. But when I learned the art of setting healthy boundaries at work, I realized that the power to push back was in my hands. Grow Faster in Your Tech Career: Join the Thriving Tech Community: In this episode, I’ll share insights gained from working with over 20 software companies as a developer, architect, and management consultant on setting effective boundaries with managers. Getting this right can bring immense...
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Does Corporate Culture KILL Creativity in Tech?
Thriving Technologist
Are you a tech professional who feels your creativity is being stifled by corporate culture? In this episode, I explore the impact of corporate culture on creativity in the tech industry. I share my personal journey—from leaving behind my passion for music to embracing programming as a new creative outlet, only to find that corporate constraints in tech began to suppress my creative spirit. Grow Faster in Your Tech Career: Join the Thriving Tech Community: I'll delve into how creativity in tech is often threatened by corporate environments that favor predictability over innovation....
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If Your Tech Job is Comfortable, You're in Danger
Thriving Technologist
Is your tech job feeling a little too comfortable? You might be unknowingly putting your career at risk. In the fast-paced world of technology, complacency can lead to career stagnation, limiting your earning potential and jeopardizing your job security. Grow Faster in Your Tech Career: Join the Thriving Tech Community: In this video, we'll uncover The Hidden Dangers of Comfort in Tech Jobs - How staying in your comfort zone can make you obsolete in a rapidly evolving industry. Signs You're Experiencing Career Stagnation - Recognize the red flags that indicate you're not growing...
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Think Your Corporate Job Is Secure? Think Again
Thriving Technologist
What if the real risk isn't leaving your corporate job, but staying in it? If you’re comfortable in your tech job today, layoffs aren’t the only risk you face. The myth of job security is a common cause for staying stuck and growing complacent. 7 years ago my life was turned upside down when I realized for the first time - just how trapped I’d become. I developed chronic insomnia and anxiety, and it eventually emptied my bank account. All because I refused to accept that I’d outgrown working for corporations. I wasn't sure if I wanted to be an entrepreneur or just work solo as a...
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The Secret to Finding Profitable Software Ideas
Thriving Technologist
Thinking of quitting the tech industry grind to start a profitable software business yourself? Before you take the plunge, don't make the same mistakes I did! The secret to finding a profitable software idea, is that it must come from your customers. Unless you know a real pain that people who would use your software are experiencing, you can easily fool yourself into thinking it's good enough to build a software product business on. In this episode, I share what I've learned about finding real software product ideas. I use a combination of IBISWorld, ChatGPT, and a book by Dane Maxwell to...
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Real 10x Programmers Are SLOW To Write Code
Thriving Technologist
If you've ever been jealous of programmers who seem to write code faster than you - take heart. The myth of the "10x programmer" is misunderstood in many software teams and tech companies. What's important to companies is NOT that you're actually 10x faster at writing code. It's that you help the company produce features 10 times faster. Wake up call - you're not the only member of the team! Over my career, I've met software developers who come into companies and write code super fast - but end up slowing the project down. They bossed around the other junior developers and thought they were...
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How To ACTUALLY Get Your Boss To Listen
Thriving Technologist
If you've ever been on a software project and you can't get your boss to listen, I've been there. Many of us are technical types, so we often think facts are enough to convince management to support us. In this episode, I share 4 strategies I've used to actually get your boss to listen. These take some patience, but if you want to see real results - they do work. No matter what tech job you work on, you'll eventually run into problems that can only be solved if you can win support from management. If you practice these strategies, they can unlock new opportunities in your career that few other...
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A TRUE Software Project Horror Story
Thriving Technologist
Have you ever felt like your software project was doomed from the start, almost as if it were the plot of a bad movie? Well, if so, you're not alone. I've been through my share of nightmarish projects, but one in particular stands out. It involved shady characters, SWAT teams, and a project that was destined for disaster from the beginning. If you've ever felt like your software project was spiraling out of control, this story might make you feel a little better—or at least a little less alone. Join my Patreon: Learn about one-on-one career coaching with me: TechRolepedia, a wiki...
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Does LinkedIn Brainwash You Into Hating Your Job?
Thriving Technologist
LinkedIn is a great resource for connecting with people, but it can also cause serious mental health challenges - and even lead to burnout. If you're looking for a job or just trying to find customers, there are some features of LinkedIn that can ruin your personal peace and drive your anxiety through the roof. In this episode I share some ways I've helped my tech career coaching clients avoid LinkedIn becoming a problem. Most of these center around avoiding comparing yourself to other people. As Gary Vaynerchuk famously recommends, "produce don't consume". If you follow some of the tips in...
info_outlineIt's finally sinking in. Your software project is FAKE agile. Is there anything you can really do about it?
The sad reality is that more companies have fake agile software development processes than those that are authentic. You can fight tooth and nail to try and change the system, or you can accept when there's nothing you can do.
Being a truly agile software company is not usually something any individual programmer or manager can change. It has to start from the top. If the company doesn't do agile budgeting and have a culture of adapting to feedback, they are a typical feature factory focused on output over outcomes.
In this episode, I offer some practical ways to let to of your frustration and do the best job you can given the circumstances. If you're the type of software engineer, manager, or any other tech job role that considers themselves a change agent - you may be challenged by this one.
But this episode isn't for everyone. It's for those of us who are experiencing mental health issues, burnout, and anger over our software project being fake agile. I hope it offers some relief.
Join my Patreon:
https://thrivingtechnologist.com/patreon
Learn about one-on-one career coaching with me:
https://thrivingtechnologist.com/coaching
TechRolepedia, a wiki about the top 25 roles in tech:
https://thrivingtechnologist.com/techroles
The Thriving Technologist career guide:
https://thrivingtechnologist.com/guide
You can also watch this episode on YouTube.
RELATED EPISODES
Spot a Fake Agile Team in Under 7 Minutes!
https://youtu.be/H6GdK-dChtY
An Agile Budget Keeps You From Being a Code Monkey
https://youtu.be/pG4wNLopMZA
Is Your "Agile" Backlog Really a Waterfall Project?
https://youtu.be/OosYzkP-pLk
Can User Stories Make Software Projects Late?
https://youtu.be/NavlPobhj7A
Are Programmers Really To Blame For Bad Estimates?
https://youtu.be/m5A1Wg8hYGo
Chapter markers / timelinks:
(0:00) Introduction
(1:30) How to Cope With FAKE Agile Development
(3:25) 1. Stop Forcing Change
(5:10) 2. Exercise
(7:25) 3. Become a Requirements Lawyer
(10:33) 4. Charge for Changes
(13:12) 5. Protect Your Reputation
(15:12) 6. Define Your Own Success
(21:54) Episode Groove
Visit me at thrivingtechnologist.com