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How to Be a 10x Engineer

1 points by Flicflac 5y ago

Flicflac 5y ago
Hi everyone, OP here :) In this article, I discuss 3 common mistakes that junior engineers make that 10x engineers don't. 3 key takeaways: 1) 10x engineers are investors first and foremost. Their work is an investment of their time, and they go for tasks that have the highest ROI. 2) 10x engineers are not "lone geniuses". They know when and who to ask for help. 2) Being difficult to work with instantly nullifies the 10x factor. Engineering is hard enough - don't let your ego wash out your 10x engineering skills. DM's always open at twitter.com/_michaellin :)
softwarebeware 5y ago
One important thing to keep in mind about the "10x engineer" is that it is a largely manufactured concept that originates with Steve McConnell, the author of Code Complete. He read a study from the 1960s that showed productivity variations between programmers and concluded that there was a 10x productivity difference "between the best and worst engineer." Since popularizing the concept by naming his consulting company's blog "10x" (which he no longer does) he has had to defend this over and over again because there actually is only flimsy research (at best) to support the idea. For example, McConnell admits that the study he based the idea in "found no relationship between a programmer’s amount of experience and code quality or productivity." (See https://www.construx.com/blog/productivity-variations-among-software-developers-and-teams-the-origin-of-10x/ https://www.construx.com/blog/productivity-variations-among-...). The book "Leprechauns of Silicon Valley" (https://leanpub.com/leprechauns https://leanpub.com/leprechauns) further undermines the idea.
- mytailorisrich 5y ago
  The actual number (10x) does not have to be taken literally. There is an underlying truth (in my experience) that not all engineers are equal and that some of them consistently contribute significantly more than others.
emrah 5y ago
> Using the right tool "Tooling" can be many things: the IDE, the language, the app design, the framework etc Investing in the right tooling is the "outcome" though. I would argue the actual skill is to be able to recognize when the current tool is not the right one, and that there is possibly a better tool to get the job done better, easier, faster. A "junior" dev (regardless of "years of experience") is one that gets stuck in the suboptimal tooling
- Flicflac 5y ago
  agreed - junior engineers don't recognize that they even need to look at other tools. hence why they end up using the wrong tools
emrah 5y ago
> Not delivering business value I met a handful of "10x engineers" over the years. Not to negate the point but none of them cared about this. You give them a task, a project to do and they do it, that's it. This is a "become valuable to the company" skill, not a "become a 10x engineer" skill.
- Flicflac 5y ago
  good point, thanks for sharing

1 points by Flicflac 5y ago

Hi everyone, OP here :) In this article, I discuss 3 common mistakes that junior engineers make that 10x engineers don't. 3 key takeaways: 1) 10x engineers are investors first and foremost. Their work is an investment of their time, and they go for tasks that have the highest ROI. 2) 10x engineers are not "lone geniuses". They know when and who to ask for help. 2) Being difficult to work with instantly nullifies the 10x factor. Engineering is hard enough - don't let your ego wash out your 10x engineering skills. DM's always open at twitter.com/_michaellin :)

softwarebeware 5y ago

One important thing to keep in mind about the "10x engineer" is that it is a largely manufactured concept that originates with Steve McConnell, the author of Code Complete. He read a study from the 1960s that showed productivity variations between programmers and concluded that there was a 10x productivity difference "between the best and worst engineer." Since popularizing the concept by naming his consulting company's blog "10x" (which he no longer does) he has had to defend this over and over again because there actually is only flimsy research (at best) to support the idea. For example, McConnell admits that the study he based the idea in "found no relationship between a programmer’s amount of experience and code quality or productivity." (See https://www.construx.com/blog/productivity-variations-among-software-developers-and-teams-the-origin-of-10x/ https://www.construx.com/blog/productivity-variations-among-...). The book "Leprechauns of Silicon Valley" (https://leanpub.com/leprechauns https://leanpub.com/leprechauns) further undermines the idea.

mytailorisrich 5y ago
The actual number (10x) does not have to be taken literally. There is an underlying truth (in my experience) that not all engineers are equal and that some of them consistently contribute significantly more than others.

emrah 5y ago

> Using the right tool "Tooling" can be many things: the IDE, the language, the app design, the framework etc Investing in the right tooling is the "outcome" though. I would argue the actual skill is to be able to recognize when the current tool is not the right one, and that there is possibly a better tool to get the job done better, easier, faster. A "junior" dev (regardless of "years of experience") is one that gets stuck in the suboptimal tooling

Flicflac 5y ago
agreed - junior engineers don't recognize that they even need to look at other tools. hence why they end up using the wrong tools

emrah 5y ago

> Not delivering business value I met a handful of "10x engineers" over the years. Not to negate the point but none of them cared about this. You give them a task, a project to do and they do it, that's it. This is a "become valuable to the company" skill, not a "become a 10x engineer" skill.

Flicflac 5y ago
good point, thanks for sharing