Early Career
5 School Habits That Make You Worse at Your Job
Being a good student might make you a poor worker. Here are a few habits and behaviors that might serve you well in the classroom but poorly in the workplace.
Latest
Organizations
If Your System Never Fails, That’s the Real Failure
Investments in operations should be at a minimal level that maintains the systems in an acceptable state forever. Poor operations are clearly bad news. But perfect operations are a waste of money.
Mid Career
The AWS Outage—Lessons on Worst-Case Scenarios
How bad is the worst-case scenario of your systems? I suspect it's not as bad as the DynamoDB system.
Early Career
8 Ways to Stop Being Crushed by Infinite Work
The better you get, the more work finds you. These skills help you survive success without losing your mind. Plus an early life lesson from my Dad.
Organizations
The 4 Major Impacts of Amazon's Decentralization and Ownership Model
Amazon is decentralized and has a strong focus on ownership. This causes various positive and negative impacts. Let's walk through those impacts, and how you can navigate them successfully.
People Managers
4 Problems Managers Run Into - and Practical Solutions
The management job comes with interesting people challenges. Here are four I've run into more than a few times and what to do when they land in your lap.
Organizations
The 5 Whys in Action: How to Turn Human Mistakes Into Lasting Improvements
When humans inevitably slip, the 5 Whys uncover the real fixes hiding beneath the surface. The 5 Whys expose our weak systems, not our weak people.
Organizations
My Reflections on Bret Taylor’s Podcast Conversation with Shane Parrish About AI and Software Development
From code generation to shifting developer roles to organizational decay, here’s what stood out to me in their discussion.
Early Career
I'll Explain How I Defeated Procrastination, Right After I Watch Another YouTube Video
What do high school students, and experienced professionals have in common? We all unwisely put off our most important work.
Organizations
Day 1 Is About Doing What’s Right. Day 2 Is About Getting Promoted.
The shift from customer obsession to career obsession happens quietly, usually through the hiring process. But as your original leadership team transitions out, a new culture moves in.
Career Growth
Work Hard, Stay Busy, and Stay Exactly Where You Are
Busyness feels productive, but without creating space for initiative and higher-impact work, you’ll stay stuck at your current level.
Organizations
Blockers Are Urgent, While Friction Endures
Blockers trigger fire drills, but friction quietly shapes customer and employee behavior every single day. (Additional bonus included - The Toilet Paper Roll Test)