6 ms·
Can we quit with the "rock stars", "ninjas" and all that? We're not teenage boys, stop talking to us as though we are.
by krstck 13y ago
Can we quit with the "rock stars", "ninjas" and all that? We're not teenage boys, stop talking to us as though we are.
- awakeasleep 13y agoHowever, we are employees, and most employees have a child-like share of understanding and decision making in their jobs.
- MBCook 13y agoA+ers? 1%-ers? MVPs? Cream of the crop? Apex-ers? Acmeees? People are going to end up using some term to denote their top performers. Verbal shorthand is very hard to get rid of.
- MartinCron 13y agoI'm all for verbal shorthand. I also agree that we can do better than the "rockstar" and "ninja" as they immature, embarrassing, and male-centric.
- jpatokal 13y agoPsst: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunoichi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunoichi
- MartinCron 13y agoSometimes I worry that I am too pedantic, thanks for reminding me that there are others playing at a much higher level of pedantry :)
- na85 13y agoNinja, okay perhaps. But I fail to see how "rock star" is male-centric. There are and have been lots of female rock stars. Courtney Love, Stevie Nicks, Pat Benatar, Tina Turner, Madonna (kinda pop, but still), Amy Lee, Ann Wilson, Tarja Turunen, etc.
- MartinCron 13y agoIt's not that there aren't female ninjas and female rockstars. It's that appealing to the ninja and rockstar image is a particularly male thing to do. Being "into" rockstars or ninjas is largely a boy thing, and (like upper body strength) has absolutely nothing to do with software development other than the fact it's a largely male dominated industry.
- blueskin_ 13y agoYou are joking, right? I hope so.
- mikeash 13y agoHow about something like "top employee"? No need to make up new terms when you can use regular words to say the same thing.
- dwaltrip 13y agoPeople like making up terms. We've been doing it for thousands of years.
- InclinedPlane 13y agoIn any other profession they'd generally be called "master" whatevers. The problem with software dev. is that it's enormously difficult to judge skill level, and impossible to do so objectively.
- NDizzle 13y ago"Achievers", man.
- harel 13y agoCouldn't agree more. Unless we code at day and fill Arenas at night with our rock and roll band, we are not rock stars. And unless we spend out nights running around rooftops assassinating and shurikening our way around, we're not ninjas. Always bugged me that terminology...
- cgriswald 13y agoAnd unless we fuse hydrogen in our cores and wear capes we are not... superstars?
- harel 13y agoProbably not though I find that word a bit easier on the ear than rockstar/ninja. Maybe because in the UK its quite common to say to someone that he's a star when they are extra helpful or kind.
- wiredfool 13y agoNot to mention the trail of bodies behind the ninja, and the ods in the bathtub for the rock stars.
- dhoulb 13y agoLike a cheap certain-to-flop ripoff of Hannah Montana...
- drdeadringer 13y ago"10x" as well.
- balls187 13y agoSelf selection bias. Why does it matter if top performers are called "rock stars?"
- suyash 13y agoAgree, only exception being if the employer is going to pay a rock star salary -- millions of dollars and a contract that make sure you receive those in either case.
- phamilton 13y agoI just call them "useful".