The most common mistake you can make in growing your team is assuming that people’s titles determine who they are as a Leader. Senior, Lead, Manager, Principal, Staff… pick your word and throw it against the wall, it doesn’t mean anything. The first thing you need to do before you start coaching a team is sit down with everyone and feel out who they are and what they are about. You might find out that…
The last few years have been a never-ending Overload. The last few days have been a literal electrical Overload. We all have those moments and the best advice I can offer; Take the moments to yourself, get your head on straight. Stay away from email/text/etc until you have had that moment to breathe. Generate that small win. Figure out what caused the overload and take steps to reduce it. If it’s never-ending, figure out why…
Software is changing fast and the docs are not keeping up. I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing, going back to when I first started programming when all I had were a litany of books spread out across my desk and that’s the only place where the answers existed. Because you know, no blogs were out there. But now, programming languages are changing so fast, code is being pumped out…
Did you accomplish what you wanted to accomplish? Even more, did you leave with the feeling that it was all worth it? Then figure out what will get you back to that feeling and make it happen. At the end of the day, you don’t want to be constantly looking back and wondering what you accomplished or why you bothered.
Always bring as much energy to the new team as you did to all the ones before. That’s why you’re leading them, because of what you brought before them. There are no laurels to rest on, now it’s time for new achievements, new opportunities and unrealized growth.