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I actually had a Ask HN question that went nowhere about how senior folks in tech with bad memories got to their positions: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id

I actually had a Ask HN question that went nowhere about how senior folks in tech with bad memories got to their positions: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18309597 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18309597 I ask b/c it seems that most (if not all) of the senior folks I've worked with in the past somehow managed to have incredibly detailed memories around: - the tech stack - the people that worked for them etc If they didn't, they did the "if you are a fighter pilot with bad vision, get a wingman with good vision" and hired a number 2 or team lead who did.

sibeliuss 4y ago
This is def me. Interestingly, I have a terrible memory when it comes to facts and names and things I read in books and so on and so forth. But I have a way-above-average situational memory. Interactions with people (or code), conversations and reasons why decisions were made tend to stick forever. It's bizarre. Granted I'm not Paul McCartney interacting with innumerable people across time and space over a whole lifetime, but this story felt familiar because I can imagine something like this happening to me.
- olddustytrail 4y ago
  I'm the opposite. I can remember all sorts of weird facts and numbers. I can remember the IP address of the DNS servers of a job I worked 20 years ago. And lyrics to songs I learned as a child. But I will forget someone's name minutes after meeting them even if I try all the tricks of repeating it 3 times or associating it with a particular action. As a side note, after I got COVID, for a few weeks I couldn't retain anything. I'd read some documentation and afterwards couldn't remember a single thing. I remember discussing it with my sister and her response was "welcome to the world of ordinary people!" It has made me more patient with people not getting what I've explained on the first hearing, so at least I've learned from my experience.
  - sibeliuss 4y ago
    How interesting -- and then after COVID resolved your memory gradually improved? I've heard anecdotal evidence about this. How frustrating! And sorry you had to experience it!
    - olddustytrail 4y ago
      Thanks, yes it slowly recovered over a few weeks. Work was pretty understanding possibly because a work colleague and my manager both had the same reaction. Must be tough for the long covid folk where it goes on for months.
- rgallagher27 4y ago
  This is me as well. I can remember code snippets down to line numbers. I can remember what, who and why decisions where made (from jobs I last worked at 5+ years ago). I can remember, almost to the exact wording what people said when having discussion/arguments but I have trouble remembering the names of people I've met multiple times, I forget basic facts about my childhood or general knowledge and I forget to follow up with people after meetings etc. I've always thought of it as having a good `situational memory`, it's interesting you say the same. I'm lucky I'm a dev, I'd be useless at anything else!
throwaway5752 4y ago
Writing things down. It's the ultimate hack. Good memory doesn't scale at all organizationally, so a good memory is actually a liability, in a sense.
- takoid 4y ago
  Reminds me of the old Chinese proverb that says “the faintest ink is more powerful than the strongest memory.”
notshift 4y ago
Is that a broken link or is my browser broken? That opens to an empty Hacker News page for me.
- petemir 4y ago
  I am having the same problem, not only for that thread but for all of the old threads. I already contacted HN about it, let's see.
  - dang 4y ago
    The post was [dead] for some reason. I've unkilled it now. Anyone who wants to see all the [dead] posts can turn "showdead" on in their profile. If you do that, just realize you're signing up to see all the crap that regular users don't see, like spam and troll posts and whatnot. There are also, unfortunately, legitimate posts that shouldn't be [dead]. If you see those, please vouch for them as described here: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html#cvouch https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html#cvouch.
zaat 4y ago
An IT manager in a company that is my client have extremely terrible memory. He is well aware of his shortcoming, ask people to remind him stuff they ask for and is important to them, and himself writes down in notebooks everything he need to follow through. The guy is doing awesome job, pushing his department forward, he is very precise and meticulous and have years of experience in leading people and projects. He developed sharp instincts that enable him to make smart decisions regarding complex issues very fast, nevertheless he is very thoughtful and open listener and doesn't act as if he knows better than everyone else.
RajT88 4y ago
> If they didn't, they did the "if you are a fighter pilot with bad vision, get a wingman with good vision" and hired a number 2 or team lead who did. A good friend of mine I made in college told me right when we first met, "I have a terrible memory. You're going to have to remember things for me, I just can't even remember people's names." Brilliant programmer (and guitar player) as well. Every 2-3 years like clockwork, he messages me saying, "I think I'm getting prematurely senile/dementia, I just have trouble remembering things." Then I explain to him again, "OK, so one of the first things you told me was..."

sibeliuss 4y ago

This is def me. Interestingly, I have a terrible memory when it comes to facts and names and things I read in books and so on and so forth. But I have a way-above-average situational memory. Interactions with people (or code), conversations and reasons why decisions were made tend to stick forever. It's bizarre. Granted I'm not Paul McCartney interacting with innumerable people across time and space over a whole lifetime, but this story felt familiar because I can imagine something like this happening to me.

olddustytrail 4y ago
I'm the opposite. I can remember all sorts of weird facts and numbers. I can remember the IP address of the DNS servers of a job I worked 20 years ago. And lyrics to songs I learned as a child. But I will forget someone's name minutes after meeting them even if I try all the tricks of repeating it 3 times or associating it with a particular action. As a side note, after I got COVID, for a few weeks I couldn't retain anything. I'd read some documentation and afterwards couldn't remember a single thing. I remember discussing it with my sister and her response was "welcome to the world of ordinary people!" It has made me more patient with people not getting what I've explained on the first hearing, so at least I've learned from my experience.
- sibeliuss 4y ago
  How interesting -- and then after COVID resolved your memory gradually improved? I've heard anecdotal evidence about this. How frustrating! And sorry you had to experience it!
  - olddustytrail 4y ago
    Thanks, yes it slowly recovered over a few weeks. Work was pretty understanding possibly because a work colleague and my manager both had the same reaction. Must be tough for the long covid folk where it goes on for months.
rgallagher27 4y ago
This is me as well. I can remember code snippets down to line numbers. I can remember what, who and why decisions where made (from jobs I last worked at 5+ years ago). I can remember, almost to the exact wording what people said when having discussion/arguments but I have trouble remembering the names of people I've met multiple times, I forget basic facts about my childhood or general knowledge and I forget to follow up with people after meetings etc. I've always thought of it as having a good `situational memory`, it's interesting you say the same. I'm lucky I'm a dev, I'd be useless at anything else!

throwaway5752 4y ago

Writing things down. It's the ultimate hack. Good memory doesn't scale at all organizationally, so a good memory is actually a liability, in a sense.

takoid 4y ago
Reminds me of the old Chinese proverb that says “the faintest ink is more powerful than the strongest memory.”

notshift 4y ago

Is that a broken link or is my browser broken? That opens to an empty Hacker News page for me.

petemir 4y ago
I am having the same problem, not only for that thread but for all of the old threads. I already contacted HN about it, let's see.
- dang 4y ago
  The post was [dead] for some reason. I've unkilled it now. Anyone who wants to see all the [dead] posts can turn "showdead" on in their profile. If you do that, just realize you're signing up to see all the crap that regular users don't see, like spam and troll posts and whatnot. There are also, unfortunately, legitimate posts that shouldn't be [dead]. If you see those, please vouch for them as described here: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html#cvouch https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html#cvouch.

zaat 4y ago

An IT manager in a company that is my client have extremely terrible memory. He is well aware of his shortcoming, ask people to remind him stuff they ask for and is important to them, and himself writes down in notebooks everything he need to follow through. The guy is doing awesome job, pushing his department forward, he is very precise and meticulous and have years of experience in leading people and projects. He developed sharp instincts that enable him to make smart decisions regarding complex issues very fast, nevertheless he is very thoughtful and open listener and doesn't act as if he knows better than everyone else.

RajT88 4y ago

> If they didn't, they did the "if you are a fighter pilot with bad vision, get a wingman with good vision" and hired a number 2 or team lead who did. A good friend of mine I made in college told me right when we first met, "I have a terrible memory. You're going to have to remember things for me, I just can't even remember people's names." Brilliant programmer (and guitar player) as well. Every 2-3 years like clockwork, he messages me saying, "I think I'm getting prematurely senile/dementia, I just have trouble remembering things." Then I explain to him again, "OK, so one of the first things you told me was..."