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I wonder if there are some people who are exceptions. I worked with an software developer at my last job who was incredible. He seemed to have a strong intere

I wonder if there are some people who are exceptions. I worked with an software developer at my last job who was incredible. He seemed to have a strong interest for the technology, no matter what technology that was. At the time, it was iOS, and he was an absolute master of iOS. I was constantly impressed by his attention to detail and emphasis on quality, well written, technically challenging code. I've loosely followed him since, and he seems to be absolutely crushing it wherever he goes. He's spanned many different roles and seems to do enjoy taking on new challenges in the form of different programming languages / platforms. When I think back to him, I remember someone who seemed to just love programming. In a way, he was like a Robot. It doesn't appear to matter much to him what he's working on, or if it's "fulfilling" in the ethical sense.... He just enjoys the process of coding, and being damn good at it.

apohn 8y ago
>I've loosely followed him since, and he seems to be absolutely crushing it wherever he goes. Question - is his management crushing it as well or are they crushing him? Is he good at standing up for himself and not letting management crush him? I think a lot of enthusiastic and brilliant people get destroyed by their managers exploiting them. So the individual goes from crushing it to getting crushed. Management really has to enable that kind of person to succeed.
- rubicon33 8y ago
  > Is he good at standing up for himself and not letting management crush him? Yes. This. He was very, very good at standing his ground and asserting that his time and effort was being spent well. Multiple times I witnessed management clashing with him over something. Usually he felt like more time and effort needed to go into a certain part of code. Rather than just "get it done" he took pride in his work and wanted it done RIGHT. In general he was so good / fast that he could get it done "RIGHT" within management's expectations. But occasionally he would take on a big chunk of work, and management would try and shut him down. 9/10 they failed, he would do the work, and a damn good job of it.
- stormbeard 8y ago
  Interesting point. Can you elaborate a bit on what you'd expect from a manager to help that person succeed? Is it mostly case-specific?
  - rubicon33 8y ago
    I can tell you that for this particular person he needed to be silo'd and given time. A good manager would realize that his quality of work was top notch but that he was at times difficult to get along with. He was a perfectionist who held those around him to the same standards, and that often clashed with the business needs and even sometimes other teammates. A business generally isn't concerned with the product being perfect, they're more concerned with it getting to market on time. So my suggestion to any manager that has an employee like this: Value him for what he is. Put him on MISSION CRITICAL tasks, where you need a rock solid implementation. Let him work for 2 weeks without interruption. For other tasks that are perhaps not as "critical", throw other team mates at them.
  - apohn 8y ago
    It's always case specific, but it usually involves the manager supporting them by providing time and/or space. rubicon33's example and response is a great one. Put them in a situation where their strengths can be well utilized and the effect of their weaknesses minimized. Also, not everybody has the personality or energy to constantly stand up for themselves. A lot of people will eventually crumble or leave. Don't make it so the only way the employee can do their best (e.g. what rubicon33 describes) is if they put their foot down and scream.

apohn 8y ago

>I've loosely followed him since, and he seems to be absolutely crushing it wherever he goes. Question - is his management crushing it as well or are they crushing him? Is he good at standing up for himself and not letting management crush him? I think a lot of enthusiastic and brilliant people get destroyed by their managers exploiting them. So the individual goes from crushing it to getting crushed. Management really has to enable that kind of person to succeed.

rubicon33 8y ago
> Is he good at standing up for himself and not letting management crush him? Yes. This. He was very, very good at standing his ground and asserting that his time and effort was being spent well. Multiple times I witnessed management clashing with him over something. Usually he felt like more time and effort needed to go into a certain part of code. Rather than just "get it done" he took pride in his work and wanted it done RIGHT. In general he was so good / fast that he could get it done "RIGHT" within management's expectations. But occasionally he would take on a big chunk of work, and management would try and shut him down. 9/10 they failed, he would do the work, and a damn good job of it.
stormbeard 8y ago
Interesting point. Can you elaborate a bit on what you'd expect from a manager to help that person succeed? Is it mostly case-specific?
- rubicon33 8y ago
  I can tell you that for this particular person he needed to be silo'd and given time. A good manager would realize that his quality of work was top notch but that he was at times difficult to get along with. He was a perfectionist who held those around him to the same standards, and that often clashed with the business needs and even sometimes other teammates. A business generally isn't concerned with the product being perfect, they're more concerned with it getting to market on time. So my suggestion to any manager that has an employee like this: Value him for what he is. Put him on MISSION CRITICAL tasks, where you need a rock solid implementation. Let him work for 2 weeks without interruption. For other tasks that are perhaps not as "critical", throw other team mates at them.
- apohn 8y ago
  It's always case specific, but it usually involves the manager supporting them by providing time and/or space. rubicon33's example and response is a great one. Put them in a situation where their strengths can be well utilized and the effect of their weaknesses minimized. Also, not everybody has the personality or energy to constantly stand up for themselves. A lot of people will eventually crumble or leave. Don't make it so the only way the employee can do their best (e.g. what rubicon33 describes) is if they put their foot down and scream.