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3 stories - Knowing what bad looks like makes it easier to spot what good looks like!

Turn visions into reality with requirement documents: Your PRD for clear direction and teamwork.

In this guide, we’ll explore practical, proven ways to improve profitability; designed to be actionable whether you’re managing one project or several.

Working harder DOES get you there faster — at a cost.

The frustration of feeling like a buffer instead of a builder, and learning to measure impact through team success rather than personal output

Why the faster tech evolves and AI advances, the more valuable computer science fundamentals become. Understanding principles beats chasing trends.

I have a friend who exited his startup a few years ago and is now rich. How rich is unclear. One day, we were discussing ways to expedite th...

Becoming a software engineer was a life hack. The best profession on earth deserved the wake up call

It can be a difference between having 0 or 1000 opportunities. I am sharing my top practical tips for becoming more social!

Why the best engineers aren’t always the smartest — and what separates engineers who ship from those who just code.

You are a lot better leader than you may think, this is why!

The opportunities for digital to grow the economy are huge, but realising them will require an expansive, bold vision for how the UK can be a digital economy, rather than have a digital economy.

Discover why engineers hate managers, the common management anti-patterns that destroy trust, and practical solutions from someone who’s been on both sides.

Managing up isn’t about trying to fix a “bad” manager. Learn how to manage up effectively and create value in the workplace with our guide.

Illustration by Catt Small

As I talked to more and more Staff-plus engineers about career advice, the most consistent recommendation was to develop a personal network of peers doing similar work. Not every person emphasized this approach, but more than half mentioned it, and for those who did, it tended to be their first and strongest recommendation. Ritu Vincent said, What’s been most impactful for me is having a lot of people who I think of as mentors, usually friends, former managers, and folks that I’ve worked with. I have a decent number of recurring monthly lunches, coffee chats, and dinners with people who’ve worked with me in the past, know me, and I trust. It’s those conversations about career challenges and growth that have gotten me to where I am in my career.

At this point, I spend less time advocating for specific technologies or programs and more time empowering others to advocate for the technologies and programs that they think are important. I also try to be a source of knowledge and support that people can reach out to for feedback, especially on cross-cutting product decisions and on presentation of ideas to the rest of the organization. - Michelle Bu One of the best measures of your long-term success as a Staff-plus engineer is that the organization around you increasingly benefits from, but doesn’t rely upon, your contributions. Because many folks reach their first Staff-plus role by being the “go-to” person for the organization, it can be a difficult transition from essential to adjacent.

How to define a model for career growth and apply it to get the right sponsors, improve your skills and maximize opportunities

Slides and notes for the Being Glue talk.

A reflection on control, burnout, and the strange weight of technical fluency.

This episode of UpLevel View is for legal leaders looking to stay ahead in an AI-driven world.

I manage 15 software engineers (mix of senior and mid-level). My 1:1 prep workflow: 1. Review notes from last 1:1 (action items, career...

We all believe in transparency and public conversations until it’s time to press Send.

This article was originally commissioned by Luca Rossi (paywalled) for refactoring.fm, on February 11th, 2025. Luca edited a version of it that emphasized the importance of building “10x engi…

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