SWLW #628: Surround yourself with compounders, Time for a code-yellow? and more.

Like always, sharing my best findings for the week.  

 

This Week's Favorite

Time for a Code-Yellow?: A Blunt Instrument That Works
5 minutes read.

"Code-yellow’s are effective because they force teams to sweat the problem harder. And if there is one reason startups make it, it is because they sweat the problem harder than anyone else. While incumbents rest easy on legacy momentum, startups don’t have that luxury. Survival means breaking down problems, attacking them from every angle, and turning what seems like chaos into rapid, gritty progress." -- An honest and important post about what makes teams win. Code-yellows are not the answer, but developing the muscle to make it your default operation is not trivial so you can "expose" the team to it by using it a few times and then tease out the substance while making it sustainable.

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Culture

Reject Modernity, Embrace Tradition…
1 minute read.

My humble effort to help you start the weekend with a smile on your face.

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Duct Tape
4 minutes read.

I see that as part of any senior leadership role. Incredibly hard to pull out right yet critical to enable scale: "As a CEO, your job, for the rest of time, is to fix the holes in as strong and permanent a way as you can. The number one way to do that is to hire great leaders who have seen some of this rodeo before (guides) who can help you patch some of the other holes, meaning help you build, teach, and coach the rest of your team. To figure out how to prioritize, you have to figure out which roles are (a) most important to the long-term success of your business and (b) least likely to be solved with duct tape."

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An Impact-Based Level System for Engineering Organizations
12 minutes read.

Elliot Graebert's framework and reasoning for each role is an excellent start if you're trying to figure out a career ladder and compensation (internal link within the post) to match a strategy that fits your company.

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Surround Yourself With Compounders
2 minutes read.

Look around you at work and home. Are you happy with the people you have around you? How does your energy feel when you're around them? What are you learning about yourself? Are you learning faster and driving inspiration from them? The people around you will change your trajectory in life, one way or the other. Make sure it works to your advantage. Be that person for them.

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Peopleware

Thirty Observations at Thirty by Delian Asparouhov
6 minutes read.

Delian is one of my favorite founders to follow. He built an incredible company (Varda Space Industries), and his insights and writing always inspired me. Some of my favorite takeaways: "Be direct even when it’s not easy, because it’s what will help that person the most in the long term." and " If you can’t write it, you aren’t thinking it."

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Don’t Go With the Flow
3 minutes read.

"Copy-and-paste leadership in tech organizations is everywhere. Often, leaders cannot explain the reasoning behind their choices and processes. [...] I prefer a minimalistic approach that tries to strip away any unnecessary vanity processes, tools, and structure. With an organization that’s as simple as you could reduce it to be without getting ridiculous, you’re a lot less likely to waste time." -- You should prefer a minimalistic approach as organizational complexity is far bigger than architectural complexity, given the emotions and ego involved.

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A 10 Year Retrospective of a Passionate Software Engineer
9 minutes read.

Excellent insights from Boris Cherkasky. Read twice his "Year of initiative (year 10)" and "Timeless truths" as there are many gems in there: thinking about asymmetrical impact, owning your career growth, figuring out a path to grow faster than the inertia forces you to, and more.

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And finally, inspiring tweets...

@vonfreud: if you build a tool to allow teams to self-service, you should run it yourself for your own things as well. If don't use it yourself or use something else, there is no skin in the game. Dog fooding is key.

@gregisenberg: Tons of startups fail when they solve imaginary problems 1) find your customers 2) learn their language 3) test what hooks them 4) learn their pains 5) look at competition 6) be different 7) validate they'll pay 8) small mvp. Commit to the community before committing to code.



p.s. if you're interested in joining SWLW's Slack channel, simply reply to this email and let me know. If you're leading a team, consider writing your Manager README (it's free) or getting my e-book and interviews Leading Snowflakes: The New Engineering Manager's Handbook. You can also support me by becoming a SWLW Patron. Thank you ❤️



Keep reading, keep learning.
-- Oren Ellenbogen.