Denner's Digest - 2022-10-10

It took me a long time to realise that my job, as an engineer, wasn't to build. It was to solve problems. And the best path is often "use someone else's solution". I'm definitely better but it's still a work in progress to get it to be my first thought in all cases. Pat's 3 things to do to avoid the trap are great. They each pull at the other, which drives honesty & ownership.

If you're not following John, do it now. Loads of insightful advice across engineering & product disciplines. What resonated here was the idea that people are equilibrium seeking. They seek to keep stability in their perception of their reality. Change challenges this. And that reveals the underlying dissonance. It feels like there are 3 categories of response to dissonance: fight, flight, adapt. The last is the only appropriate choice, if only emotion would not get the better of us.

The military is a deep source of information for leadership, communication, and coordination. And they're also a great resource for how to learn too, believe it or not. Russ Laraway, the author at the heart of this article, is ex-military. So it's unsurprising to find some of their tenets. The rule of 3 crops up, one I love to see. As does giving context to allow others to steer themselves. The article agrees with what we know to be true: better managers help keep talent.

My writing has advanced over the last few years. In part this is because I have settled into a routine. Now I write to understand, then refactor to communicate. But I also leverage tools like Grammarly to improve my comprehension. I love the idea of "Good writing is pointing out". And "Stopping is as crucial as starting" feels like Pomodoro, which has made me more productive. I'm still working on the "Zettelkasten". There are a growing number of subjects for which I would not be starting with a blank page.