The Erosion of Virtue
Speed is prized; thoughtfulness gets labeled “overthinking.” But 深思熟虑, think deeply and act with care, is not delay. It is judgment. Pause for choices that matter. Ask who benefits from the rush. Measure twice, cut once. Finish better, regret less.
The Lie of the All-Knowing Leader
I thought leadership meant having every answer. It was fear in disguise. Real leadership says I don't know, shares context, invites dissent, and builds teams that run without a hero. Be a host, not the bottleneck. Trade control for trust so resilience can grow.
We Got the Speed We Begged For. Now We Hate the Results
AI isn’t soulless. It mirrors us. We asked for speed and got it, then blamed the tool when craft felt thin. The tool is not the skill. The driver is. Bring taste, patience, and judgment, and the work lives. Want meaning? Pay the price in effort. The rest is on us.
The Illusion of 100% Test Coverage
I've watched teams chase 100% and still ship bugs. Coverage proves code ran, not that it worked. Real safety comes from assertions that bite, weird inputs, mutation tests, and tough reviews. Treat coverage as a flashlight, not a finish line.
Why Software Development Gets Harder in Teams
Teams don’t stall from code alone. They stall when dominance grows, speed turns to sugar, and harmony goes quiet. The fix is candor, shared ownership, and steady refactors before the floor gives way.
The Small Group That Holds You Back
You are not performing for the world. You are performing for five loud voices in your head. Most people are not watching. Choose your advisors on purpose, expect to be misunderstood, and ship anyway. The only approval you need to live with is your own.
When Ego Hijacks the Room
Drop status games. Trade being right for getting it right. Egos stall teams, mute ideas, and kill trust. Listen more, share credit, fix problems not people, and ask what outcome we want. Play for progress. Help the crew win together.
No, the Code Doesn’t Speak for Itself
“Self-documenting code” is a comforting lie. Without READMEs, API contracts, and decision logs, you create onboarding hell, brittle integrations, and knowledge silos. Adopt a “just-enough docs” mindset and make documentation part of done.
You’re NOT Big Tech
You’re not Netflix. Nor Amazon, Facebook, or Google—and yet many developers build systems as if you are. We spin up microservices, multi-region setups, and abstraction layers for users who don’t exist. We solve imaginary problems while missing the real ones.
Why Continuous Integration Is Killing Your Productivity Instead of Helping
Continuous Integration promised faster feedback and fewer integration headaches. But when misapplied, it turns into a grind—slow, flaky pipelines that stall your flow and leave you staring at progress bars or midnight build failures. The very tool meant to help can end up draining your productivity.
How do we decide how to solve a problem?
In software development we encounter many problems daily—from UI glitches to architecture issues. A clear, precise definition lets us choose the right path. Then we set evaluation criteria, explore options, prototype, iterate based on feedback, and document our decisions.
Slow Down to Move Faster
In software development, speed can be costly. Quick fixes often hide deeper issues, leading to more rework. Slowing down to think deliberately, plan, and explore options may feel slower at first but often produces better solutions, fewer bugs, and stronger long-term results.
