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Write down the things you got called out on in review. Build a checklist of them. Perform a self review for them. So more code reviews and design reviews for o
by Pfhreak 7y ago
Write down the things you got called out on in review. Build a checklist of them. Perform a self review for them.
So more code reviews and design reviews for others and try to ask why whenever you don't understand what you are looking at. Asking questions is a sign of strength.
Spend a little more time on design, and whiteboard with a coworker before you implement. Draw the boxes and arrows of your approach and reason about where it will break. It will break on some axis sometime, tell yourself where it is.
Find a mentor. There are tons of folks who would spend an hour every week answering questions about design that you were too shy to ask in the bigger group.
Stop meetings when you don't understand a term. Ask for a clarification.
Talk to your manager, be open about wanting to improve this specific skill. Speaking as an engineering manager myself, one of the most fulfilling parts of my job is seeing someone ask for help and giving them a chance to stretch and learn.
Accept failures. A failure just means you learned something. I've seen some big failures and caused some big failures. I learned and moved on. That said, don't fail the same exact way more than once if you can help it.
Ask for peer feedback. Maybe no one else thinks you aren't performing. Maybe you've set up a false narrative about yourself.
Ask, specifically, "am I asking for help too soon or too late" and really listen to the answer.
- vidar 7y agoGreat list, also spend money on a coach, both technical and soft skills. It will pay for itself many times over.
- notyourwork 7y agoWhat kind of coach?
- davidhyde 7y agoA bus to get you to the green place where they don’t talk about velocity.
- plutonorm 7y agoSeconded. It may be that you're in a toxic environment. In such places it doesn't matter how good your design is or how tight you're implementation, you still get hostility and nit picking on code review. And not in a constructive way. Sometimes it's not you, it's them. When development turns into a dick swinging competition, walk away. It's better for your health.
- moolcool 7y ago"walk away. It's better for your health" In situations like this, if you don't make the decision to walk away, the decision will probably be made for you.
- toomuchtodo 7y agoIf it does get made for you, don't take it personally. Just like dating, there's a better fit out there for you.
- hashkb 7y agoSometimes it's this attitude that is toxic to profitability. OP didn't say it felt unfair, and it's not right for this community to constantly reinforce the "big bad wolf" theory of senior engineer dick swingery when someone honestly wants to get better.
- notyourwork 7y agoSorry maybe I’m dumb but I’m not following this.
- goodcanadian 7y agoIt's a play on words. The great grandparent suggested hiring a coach, i.e. a mentor or instructor, to improve his skills. The word coach, shortened from stagecoach, also refers to an intercity bus (what I would have called a highway bus as a kid). So, the reply is suggesting taking the bus to another city where jargon like "velocity" is not used. It suggests the problem is the company culture rather than the individual. I thought it was quite clever.
- rubber_duck 7y ago>Asking questions is a sign of strength. Hell no ! Asking good questions absolutely - asking generic questions that can be googled in less than five minutes shows that you either can't search and solve problema on your own or don't respect my time. I've seen a lot of newbies take this approach when someone tells them this advice - I usually tell them after a few times and then if I see this pattern I recommend not keeping them because they end up being a net negative. Also a confused guy stopping meetings is the worst - taking time out of the entire team who now has to listen to stuff they already understand explained again. Pull someone aside afterwards for clarification.
- Rainymood 7y ago>Also a confused guy stopping meetings is the worst - taking time out of the entire team who now has to listen to stuff they already understand explained again. Pull someone aside afterwards for clarification. "Also a student stopping lectures is the worst - taking time out of the entire classroom who now has to listen to stuff they already understand explained again. Pull someone aside afterwards for clarification." You are part of the reason why people are scared to speak up and ask "stupid" questions, and I feel like that ends up being a net negative.
- Gibbon1 7y agoFriends of mine that are teachers say, if one student speaks up and says they don't get it. Then most of them aren't following either.
- marcus_holmes 7y agohad this in Uni. I was the annoying student who asked questions all the time. After a few units, I had other students thank me for asking all those questions, because they also didn't understand but were too shy to ask.
- agustif 7y agoWell the old adage of not caring of looking stupid or asking stupid questions. If one is engaged in conversation, one should not restrain himself from asking whatever for politics/social issues. Let the question be asked, it can be esaily dismissed or ignored if it's a bad/not useful question, but it can be asked too anyway!