4 ms·

I’ve definitely worked with 10x developers and 0.1x ones. It seems weird to deny they exist and to not seek them out for your organization.

threatripper 4y ago
The 10x developers are way more dangerous to the status-quo in an established company than the 0.1x developers. If your business-system is up and running don't change it. Milk the cow and then move on. That method worked for many years.
- apsurd 4y ago
  That seem easily true by looking at historical examples. But history isn't proof for future outcomes and dare I say our "age of tech" actively seems disprove all these historical truisms. Innovate or die kinda thing. But, we are watching all this play out live, so who's to say. FWIW I am not betting that the old status-quo is meaningfully better.
- cjbgkagh 4y ago
  That has a survivorship bias, not all cows survived the milking
  - threatripper 4y ago
    That's why you should not be the cow.
xupybd 4y ago
I don't think the article is saying the don't exist. It's saying that they only exist within a specific context. They're 10x in one domain. But it's also saying that what they're calling 10x could be a developer with a skill set that might not be possible for another developer to compete with, even if given infinite time.
- prepend 4y ago
  That’s a good point, but domains can be broadly applicable. For example, I worked with two programmers who knew data structures and I/o to a great level. After they left my employer tried to replace them with teams and teams and couldn’t. There are lots of companies that need data structures and I/o.
pdimitar 4y ago
No sane person will deny they exist. However, the idea that you can have more of the 10x devs is an illusion and wishful thinking. Mostly because it doesn't take into account the undeniable fact that the high performers aren't at their 100% all the time. It's also kind of physically impossible, too.
- prepend 4y ago
  1x developers aren’t at 100% all the time either. I think the 10x metric is productivity over a time period rather than peak performance. If I remember the original McKinsey report the idea is that one 10x will produce the same as 10 regular devs in a year. I consider myself a 1x (or maybe .75x) and have periods of contemplation followed by periods of productivity within an hour or even a day. A 10x, I suppose, could operate in the same manner and so it’s certainly physically possible. I’ve read interviews with John Carmack and he describes spending a few hours a day programming and almost a flow state.
naniwaduni 4y ago
The existence of 10x developers should be obvious given the existence of -10xers.
hsbauauvhabzb 4y ago
You can get net negative too, the higher up the chain the more destructive their decisions can be.

threatripper 4y ago

The 10x developers are way more dangerous to the status-quo in an established company than the 0.1x developers. If your business-system is up and running don't change it. Milk the cow and then move on. That method worked for many years.

apsurd 4y ago
That seem easily true by looking at historical examples. But history isn't proof for future outcomes and dare I say our "age of tech" actively seems disprove all these historical truisms. Innovate or die kinda thing. But, we are watching all this play out live, so who's to say. FWIW I am not betting that the old status-quo is meaningfully better.
cjbgkagh 4y ago
That has a survivorship bias, not all cows survived the milking
- threatripper 4y ago
  That's why you should not be the cow.

xupybd 4y ago

I don't think the article is saying the don't exist. It's saying that they only exist within a specific context. They're 10x in one domain. But it's also saying that what they're calling 10x could be a developer with a skill set that might not be possible for another developer to compete with, even if given infinite time.

prepend 4y ago
That’s a good point, but domains can be broadly applicable. For example, I worked with two programmers who knew data structures and I/o to a great level. After they left my employer tried to replace them with teams and teams and couldn’t. There are lots of companies that need data structures and I/o.

pdimitar 4y ago

No sane person will deny they exist. However, the idea that you can have more of the 10x devs is an illusion and wishful thinking. Mostly because it doesn't take into account the undeniable fact that the high performers aren't at their 100% all the time. It's also kind of physically impossible, too.

prepend 4y ago
1x developers aren’t at 100% all the time either. I think the 10x metric is productivity over a time period rather than peak performance. If I remember the original McKinsey report the idea is that one 10x will produce the same as 10 regular devs in a year. I consider myself a 1x (or maybe .75x) and have periods of contemplation followed by periods of productivity within an hour or even a day. A 10x, I suppose, could operate in the same manner and so it’s certainly physically possible. I’ve read interviews with John Carmack and he describes spending a few hours a day programming and almost a flow state.

naniwaduni 4y ago

The existence of 10x developers should be obvious given the existence of -10xers.

hsbauauvhabzb 4y ago

You can get net negative too, the higher up the chain the more destructive their decisions can be.