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I think this is partially true but it’s important to make sure the garbage is on fire before cleaning it up. If you clean it up before it’s on fire you just be

by rdtwo 4y ago

I think this is partially true but it’s important to make sure the garbage is on fire before cleaning it up. If you clean it up before it’s on fire you just become a lowly garbage man. If the garbage is on fire and you positioned yourself to clean it up you are a hero and take credit. If you are a really corporate pro you wait till the fire is mostly put out then sweep in for the photo op.

vyrotek 4y ago
This advice in comic form. https://twitter.com/_workchronicles/status/1314436905501511681 https://twitter.com/_workchronicles/status/13144369055015116...
- rdtwo 4y ago
  I’m going to print this out and hang it on my wall
mjr00 4y ago
> I think this is partially true but it’s important to make sure the garbage is on fire before cleaning it up. Yeah. Especially true as the article mentions tech debt as an example. Too many times I've seen overeager developers early in their careers insist that the most important thing in the world is rewriting the old service written in C++/ASP/whatever, without respecting the fact that the old service has been dutiful performing mostly without issue for years, and the only time it comes up is the one time per year someone needs to go in and spend two weeks adding a minor feature or bugfix.
dasil003 4y ago
You summed up my reaction to the article perfectly. Anyone working in a large company can easily point a half dozen problems off the top of their head. This is especially true of software engineers who are detail oriented by nature. Lots of these ideas will overlap and find common cause, but some will be conflicting. At the end of the day, focus and alignment is needed to avoid chaos. Therefore, it's best to go about these things incrementally, building awareness along the way, and ensure you have executive sponsorship commensurate with the investment you are making. The narrative should be designed to resonate with as many people as possible. If you miss the socialization process you will mostly get a big shrug at perf review time.
- rdtwo 4y ago
  Even if the narrative is good often times there are other higher priority issues the org is dealing with. You need to make sure the problem becomes a priority before you show up with the fire truck. Typically you can pre position yourself if you see it coming as long as you can stay disengaged enough that the initial fire isn’t blamed on you. This is just how big orgs work. Not startup mentality

by rdtwo 4y ago

vyrotek 4y ago

This advice in comic form. https://twitter.com/_workchronicles/status/1314436905501511681 https://twitter.com/_workchronicles/status/13144369055015116...

rdtwo 4y ago
I’m going to print this out and hang it on my wall

mjr00 4y ago

> I think this is partially true but it’s important to make sure the garbage is on fire before cleaning it up. Yeah. Especially true as the article mentions tech debt as an example. Too many times I've seen overeager developers early in their careers insist that the most important thing in the world is rewriting the old service written in C++/ASP/whatever, without respecting the fact that the old service has been dutiful performing mostly without issue for years, and the only time it comes up is the one time per year someone needs to go in and spend two weeks adding a minor feature or bugfix.

dasil003 4y ago

You summed up my reaction to the article perfectly. Anyone working in a large company can easily point a half dozen problems off the top of their head. This is especially true of software engineers who are detail oriented by nature. Lots of these ideas will overlap and find common cause, but some will be conflicting. At the end of the day, focus and alignment is needed to avoid chaos. Therefore, it's best to go about these things incrementally, building awareness along the way, and ensure you have executive sponsorship commensurate with the investment you are making. The narrative should be designed to resonate with as many people as possible. If you miss the socialization process you will mostly get a big shrug at perf review time.

rdtwo 4y ago
Even if the narrative is good often times there are other higher priority issues the org is dealing with. You need to make sure the problem becomes a priority before you show up with the fire truck. Typically you can pre position yourself if you see it coming as long as you can stay disengaged enough that the initial fire isn’t blamed on you. This is just how big orgs work. Not startup mentality