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OP here. Our product is an analytics service and we manage large volumes of time-series and cohort data. Every developer has lots of room for improvement. I'm

OP here. Our product is an analytics service and we manage large volumes of time-series and cohort data. Every developer has lots of room for improvement. I'm no exception. What I'm calling out is that there's a large cohort of developers, I've labeled them as "average developers," who completely stop growing intellectually and professional. They're technically passable but are stunted. Strong developers, a small cohort of 10x developers (I'm a 10x developer) who I've labeled as "strong developers." The reason they are so productive is a strong focus on self improvement in areas that drive productivity. For some really gifted developers this may come naturally / intuitively; for others like me it was more intentional / learned. I wanted to share those learnings with average developers who are self-aware enough to realize that they're not growing and don't know how to fix it. The condescending tone is intentional. Having a thick skin is a requirement to confront your own weakness. If the tone bothers you, you're probably a little too sensitive. And in case you're curious: I would never talk down to an engineer on my team this way. I can recognize the difference in writing a blog post intended for the anonymous Internet versus an intimate conversation with someone I work with 12 hours a day.

vosper 14y ago
I am always concerned when I hear a developer self-identifying as a "10x developer" - you may well be right, but it smacks of arrogance as well. Likewise, being intentionally condescending is an unusual approach to take at any time - even to the "anonymous internet". No-one likes to be condescended to (by definition) and so if you're attempting to promote your company and opinions I'd advise you to reconsider your tone.
- Aaronontheweb 14y ago
  I'm not the best developer in the world and probably won't be, but I'll freely admit that I'm excellent when it comes to productivity and iteration speed. There's nothing "arrogant" about believing that you're good at something, particularly after spending many many years believing that you weren't and working really hard to improve. And there are many things I still do wrong and I'm working on improving those too. Most of the feedback I've received on the article has been overwhelmingly positive, which leads me to believe that it's a small population of sensitive people who take issue with the tone.

vosper 14y ago

I am always concerned when I hear a developer self-identifying as a "10x developer" - you may well be right, but it smacks of arrogance as well. Likewise, being intentionally condescending is an unusual approach to take at any time - even to the "anonymous internet". No-one likes to be condescended to (by definition) and so if you're attempting to promote your company and opinions I'd advise you to reconsider your tone.

Aaronontheweb 14y ago
I'm not the best developer in the world and probably won't be, but I'll freely admit that I'm excellent when it comes to productivity and iteration speed. There's nothing "arrogant" about believing that you're good at something, particularly after spending many many years believing that you weren't and working really hard to improve. And there are many things I still do wrong and I'm working on improving those too. Most of the feedback I've received on the article has been overwhelmingly positive, which leads me to believe that it's a small population of sensitive people who take issue with the tone.