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I've managed many "10x" engineers. They do exist. These engineers I'm thinking about not only are amazingly productive but solve problems average engineers can'

I've managed many "10x" engineers. They do exist. These engineers I'm thinking about not only are amazingly productive but solve problems average engineers can't solve no matter how much time you give them. Their solutions are elegant, performant and survive design changes. Their code is easier to maintain. Paying 2x the average to these people is a steal,as they are a LOT better than that. Not sure how much, but I'd rather have one of them on my team than 3 average engineers (probably more). I'm not saying average engineers aren't useful workers. They are, they get things done if they aren't incompetent. But they are nowhere near a 10x engineer. 10x engineers aren't perfect. But they are amazing nonetheless. If you have never worked with one, maybe it's because you had bad luck, haven't been around long enough or haven't worked in great teams. Whatever the reason,once you meet a 10x, you will know it.

headmelted 4y ago
> Just to pre-empt someone telling me I must never have met a real 10x engineer That should save us some time. > Whatever the reason,once you meet a 10x, you will know it. Guess not.
- ColinWright 4y ago
  So let's see if I have this right. * You've never met a 10x engineer, and you can reason clearly and cogently as to why they don't exist, so you conclude that they don't exist; * Someone ... indeed, several someones ... tell you they they have met, worked with, and/or managed people who really are 10x engineers; * You say that these people must be wrong. This feels a lot like the biologists who wrote - convincingly - that kangaroos can't exist. They'd never seen one, and gave completely water-tight arguments that the method of locomotion was inherently impossible.
clpm4j 4y ago
I think it might be more apt to say that there are "10x employees" because it doesn't just apply to engineers. A small minority of people are just freakishly good at what they do (whatever that might be).
UmbertoNoEco 4y ago
Why a mythical guy like that would choose to be managed by a "lowly" 1X?
- pindab0ter 4y ago
  Why does it have to be ‘mythical’ and ‘lowly’ and why should that matter? Managing is a different role than engineering, even though there can be overlap.

headmelted 4y ago

> Just to pre-empt someone telling me I must never have met a real 10x engineer That should save us some time. > Whatever the reason,once you meet a 10x, you will know it. Guess not.

ColinWright 4y ago
So let's see if I have this right. * You've never met a 10x engineer, and you can reason clearly and cogently as to why they don't exist, so you conclude that they don't exist; * Someone ... indeed, several someones ... tell you they they have met, worked with, and/or managed people who really are 10x engineers; * You say that these people must be wrong. This feels a lot like the biologists who wrote - convincingly - that kangaroos can't exist. They'd never seen one, and gave completely water-tight arguments that the method of locomotion was inherently impossible.

clpm4j 4y ago

I think it might be more apt to say that there are "10x employees" because it doesn't just apply to engineers. A small minority of people are just freakishly good at what they do (whatever that might be).

UmbertoNoEco 4y ago

Why a mythical guy like that would choose to be managed by a "lowly" 1X?

pindab0ter 4y ago
Why does it have to be ‘mythical’ and ‘lowly’ and why should that matter? Managing is a different role than engineering, even though there can be overlap.