4 ms·

It doesn't matter if a coworker can unblock you in 10 seconds, spend the 30 minutes struggling and sweating. That's when you grow. The struggle makes you grow.

pensatoio 6y ago
Yeah, I agree. I really don’t mind tons of questions, but sometimes, after hitting a few roadblocks, a new, junior developer will start turning off their brain and asking genuinely silly questions because they’re no longer thinking. I’d rather tell people to take an hour break if they feel like they’re in that state. Get something to eat. Read a book. Come back ready to analyze. Come back and feel out the problem so you can ask good questions. This week, a new developer started asking me questions every 10 minutes that were clearly covered in our on onboarding doc (including commands to copy and paste with explanation.) If they followed the guide are by step, they wouldn’t have had half as many questions. It’s really just a case of being overwhelmed. Take a break and come back.
t-writescode 6y ago
I don't agree with this based on the specific example that she provided. Searching for legacy files, or annoying historical lessons, especially in a codebase you're entirely unfamiliar with, is a perfect example of a time to ask a question like that. In fact, I might even put it as an oversight of the engineer that's guiding the new engineer if they didn't tell their coworker where the files are, especially when there's been a shift between old and new styles. It's okay, though, experienced engineers make mistakes, as well.
furrowedbrow 6y ago
I'd agree these are all valid, and not mutually exclusive. ie, as a junior dev use some discretion based on what type of issue you're facing, as a manager set the tone and if needed give the offer some guidance on when to struggle for a bit, when to ask, and when to take a break (still such an underrated strategy!). This is one of those problems that only gets solved when both parties understand the solution though. In other words a developer can have a good grasp of how question-asking should work, but despite a lot of lip service, this manager or the next might not get it. And vice versa managers/devs.
macintux 6y ago
At $50 or more an hour, I’d rather they ask. If it’s a question where I think they could find the answer with a little more effort and I have the time, I’ll walk them through the discovery process myself. Especially since the answer you arrive at after 30 minutes struggling may appear to be correct but have implications you don’t understand. This one bites people a lot, myself included.

pensatoio 6y ago

Yeah, I agree. I really don’t mind tons of questions, but sometimes, after hitting a few roadblocks, a new, junior developer will start turning off their brain and asking genuinely silly questions because they’re no longer thinking. I’d rather tell people to take an hour break if they feel like they’re in that state. Get something to eat. Read a book. Come back ready to analyze. Come back and feel out the problem so you can ask good questions. This week, a new developer started asking me questions every 10 minutes that were clearly covered in our on onboarding doc (including commands to copy and paste with explanation.) If they followed the guide are by step, they wouldn’t have had half as many questions. It’s really just a case of being overwhelmed. Take a break and come back.

t-writescode 6y ago

I don't agree with this based on the specific example that she provided. Searching for legacy files, or annoying historical lessons, especially in a codebase you're entirely unfamiliar with, is a perfect example of a time to ask a question like that. In fact, I might even put it as an oversight of the engineer that's guiding the new engineer if they didn't tell their coworker where the files are, especially when there's been a shift between old and new styles. It's okay, though, experienced engineers make mistakes, as well.

furrowedbrow 6y ago

I'd agree these are all valid, and not mutually exclusive. ie, as a junior dev use some discretion based on what type of issue you're facing, as a manager set the tone and if needed give the offer some guidance on when to struggle for a bit, when to ask, and when to take a break (still such an underrated strategy!). This is one of those problems that only gets solved when both parties understand the solution though. In other words a developer can have a good grasp of how question-asking should work, but despite a lot of lip service, this manager or the next might not get it. And vice versa managers/devs.

macintux 6y ago

At $50 or more an hour, I’d rather they ask. If it’s a question where I think they could find the answer with a little more effort and I have the time, I’ll walk them through the discovery process myself. Especially since the answer you arrive at after 30 minutes struggling may appear to be correct but have implications you don’t understand. This one bites people a lot, myself included.