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The Human Dimension of Software Engineering

The Human Dimension of Software Engineering

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How To Deal With Praise

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I am going to discuss how to deal with praise, but first, let me talk about blog post length.

First Mini-Post In A While

When I started this blog, I used to write only short posts of 300 words or so. That was not enough, so I switched to longer ones, about 2,000 words. Now, I decided that not all posts must be long to be worthy; variety could be fun. I often have ideas for shorter off-schedule issues on rather specific topics, and I will not shy away from publishing them. This is the first one … [Read more...] about How To Deal With Praise

6 Career Ratholes to Avoid in Software Engineering

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There are virtually infinite paths you can take to have a successful and fulfilling career in the software industry. Then again, many roads can lead to long-term issues and career ratholes.

The world of tech forgives compared to other fields. Just think of the areas of law, medicine, and politics for example, where a weak reputation can follow you around and be a disaster hard to recover from. In tech, you might not risk being blackballed from the industry or losing a professional license. … [Read more...] about 6 Career Ratholes to Avoid in Software Engineering

7 Strategies to Avoid Software Growth Zero, AKA Drowning in Maintenance

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The Software Garden

Software is like a garden. Both software and gardens require a lot of work, craftsmanship, and artistry to envision and create, especially when starting from scratch. They both evolve, and they both need constant maintenance, even if you don't make any significant improvement.

If you are a reader of my blog, you know that I use a character called Bolbo as my mental framework for the quintessentialsoftware developer. You might remember that he has a square jaw, messy black … [Read more...] about 7 Strategies to Avoid Software Growth Zero, AKA Drowning in Maintenance

How to Lead Change, a Primer

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On Change

Leo Tolstoy famously said, "Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself." Tolstoy's words are true today as much as they were true in his time. Life in the 1800s was very different, but people were not.

Today's tech industry, populated by smart people pushing hard to innovate one line of code at the time, is no exception. Intelligence comes with strong opinions and personalities. If you've worked in teams for a while, at some point, you probably … [Read more...] about How to Lead Change, a Primer

10 Top Reasons To Have a Career in Tech

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If you’re exploring new professional opportunities, a career in tech may have caught your attention as a potential avenue. Even if you already have one, you might have reached a point where you wonder if it was the right decision.

Having been in the software industry for 30+ years, I firmly believe that a career in tech, and especially programming and software engineering, is not only accessible to everyone, but it also represents a brilliant path to take in life. I am going to give you my top … [Read more...] about 10 Top Reasons To Have a Career in Tech