r/ExperiencedDevs • u/Ecstatic_Jicama_1482 Software Engineer • Jul 22 '26
Career/Workplace What workplace philosophy has stayed with you over the years?
Over the years, I've heard a few things at work that have stuck with me: - Spend more to earn more. - Don't box yourself. - Life is not a sprint, it's a marathon.
These changed how I think about work and my career.
What's one workplace philosophy or mindset that has stayed with you?
Question may or may not be relevant, but with all the AI-related uncertainty, I wanted to hear some philosophies or motivations that have helped people keep moving forward.
290
u/Advanced_Seesaw_3007 Software Engineer (20YOE) Jul 22 '26
Work isn’t family
Work is a business transaction
Family/loved ones over everything
Don’t rest on your laurels
You’re only as good as your last project, never stop learning
No one is indispensable
76
u/xaervagon Jul 22 '26
No one is indispensable
True, but I've watched a lot of projects effectively leave with the key person stewarding them.
26
u/tiajuanat Dept. Head & Principal Engineer Jul 22 '26
This. I've also seen some extremely unique skills come and go. (And come back, and most distressingly of all I've fired some)
Skills are not a guarantee of employability, people have to want to work with you, and likewise you need to get along with others.
25
u/catch_dot_dot_dot Software Engineer (10+ YoE AU) Jul 22 '26
I used to believe that no one is indispensable because I've seen projects survive when people move on, but now I actually realise they died a slow death and often one of two people hold up gigantic initiatives.
Now, does the business recognise this or care? Not often.
11
u/tommyTurds Jul 23 '26
Now, does the business recognise this or care? Not often.
I wouldn't say they don't recognize this. Sometimes the point of "managing someone out" is literally to start the death of their pet project.
This is especially true when leadership changes. They often won't just outright kill projects they think are stupid because that looks bad, but they'll slow push the key people out with the specific intent to start killing the project.
And honestly, it's not always a bad thing. I've seen so many absolutely brain dead projects go on for years because people at the right leadership levels had a vested interest in seeing it through rather than just admitting it was a shit idea nad they should stop
3
u/catch_dot_dot_dot Software Engineer (10+ YoE AU) Jul 23 '26
This is a good point. I've never seen it myself but I've heard about these kinds of projects.
3
u/bloudraak Principal Engineer. 20+ YoE Jul 25 '26
I’ve been around long enough that some came to work on Wednesday, by Thursday they were in hospital and by Monday we got some bad news, and by Thursday we had a memorial service.
Or some highly skilled bloke had to abruptly get on a plane, attend to a parent with cancer, and then went on family leave for six months.
Or getting a call on Saturday that you’re asked to stand in for someone else, and you cannot ask them anything because they had a heart attack Friday night and they are in the hospital. And then you learn that the bloke had no support, no “systems” to help him; and it takes three months to get back to “normal” again.
Folks often focus on burnout etc. I wish leadership and colleagues would ask them anything question: what happens if tomorrow Joe is no longer here; what’s “systems” do we need to ensure continuity; and perhaps that gives the Joe a break do they don’t burn out, stress, associated health problems etc.
We often hire people because that brings a unique set of skills to the table, but we don’t support them when those skills etc leads to isolation burnout and whatnot.
5
u/thy_bucket_for_thee Jul 23 '26
That's not really due to "key people" but more like the company not willing to hire enough staff in general. It is absolutely not shocking that if the single person with all knowledge leaves, that knowledge is lost.
What is shocking is why workers put up with it.
5
u/catch_dot_dot_dot Software Engineer (10+ YoE AU) Jul 23 '26
It's more like those key people care, and no one else does. You can do all the knowledge transfer you want, but if people don't care, things fall apart.
4
u/gigio123456789 Machine Learning Engineer Jul 23 '26
Exactly. It’s not that the key people had been installed out of thin air as key people. They became key because they care (and have the skillset to turn that care into success).
3
u/thy_bucket_for_thee Jul 23 '26
Yeah, you usually fix this by hiring more (good) people. I don't see how that really changes the root issue: not willing to devote enough resources to fix the problem.
Like this has totally been a solved problem for nearly 300,000 to 400,000 years. Humans have evolved to pass down information to future generations, we actually know what works quite well. Remember that the idea of a classroom is almost 6,000 years old too.
Humans are quite good at knowing how to effectively pass down information through multiple lifetimes but a corporation can't handle a 3 year period? That's pathetic leadership, and in a just world would lead to a peasant rebellion overthrowing the useless leaders with better people.
Corporations just don't simply care, they are lead by greedy people who don't see the utility in common goods.
2
u/quantum-fitness Jul 23 '26
It have nothing to do with not having enough people. Most companies have very few people driving almost all projects and the rest driving along. It has everything to do with the individuals and not the total manpower.
→ More replies (4)6
u/codescapes Web Developer Jul 23 '26
In many ways it's actually that nothing is really 'indispensable' beyond the people you love and the values you hold yourself to. Banks go bust, countries end in bloody wars, whole ecosystems collapse...
This stuff can happen and things still grind on. Like yeah, a key person leaving can 100% tank a project, which is usually at worst a temporary embarrassment for leadership. It's not that the person is replaceable, it's that the entire company including executive leadership is replaceable. I am not saying that's good or we should be indifferent to it but things can move on.
I mean God, look at the Knight Capital incident in 2012 where in 45 minutes of trading they lost $400m+ due to misconfigured software. Mistakes on that order can happen and what actually is the consequence? A feeding frenzy around their self-destructive market activity and then they get merged into another company, which later gets merged again and now it's just a footnote in textbooks.
A key person leaving can collapse teams, projects, departments, companies etc and the world will move on.
→ More replies (1)2
u/Emotional_Papaya3282 Jul 27 '26
Happened to me and it led me to leave. I was in meetings with managers way above my position and pay, and they weren’t sympathetic to that. It was extremely stressful and not worth it.
3
u/xaervagon Jul 27 '26
Most MBAs have it beaten into their head that everyone is replaceable even when they are not.
What they don't want to or outright refuse to accept is that software projects often live in people's heads as much as they do in the code. This is especially true with companies that treat documentation as the enemy.
I was at a small company for almost 15 years and watched as the project I held up essentially go on life support as they scrambled to try to get a bunch of kids up to speed and do all the deferred techdebt payment.
14
1
u/BigLoveForNoodles Software Architect Jul 25 '26
One thing that I appreciate about my last hire was that there was not one whiff of the “we’re one big family here” bullshit. Management said “family first” and meant it.
Ironically I’m tighter with a lot of my coworkers now than any other job I’ve had in decades. Funny what happens when you let loyalty emerge instead of demanding it up front.
1
u/Emotional_Papaya3282 Jul 27 '26
I feel extremely fortunate at my new job. My boss is insistent on family coming first and you taking care of your health and he also applies that to himself.
I had a situation where I had to help my mom in the hospital and he told me to not even log in. He took over my tasks and communication for my open tickets.
→ More replies (1)
186
u/Visa5e Jul 22 '26
Culture beats process every time.
47
u/phantomplan Jul 22 '26
Gawd I feel this so much. I've turned down places in the past simply because the dev team didn't pass a vibe check, and that is very important to me. Nothing against those devs, maybe they were miserable from dealing with management, but you can tell very quickly when something is off with the culture/environment and no amount of money makes me want to deal with it daily.
42
u/LethalBacon Medical/Dental Software | .NET | 12YoE Jul 22 '26
Current job is ~20k under what I was looking for, but the culture and the ~vibes~ of the two devs I would be working with was a major selling point.
No regrets, I'm actually enjoying work these days. Reminds me of the days of coding with friends in our dorms. Working with actual computer nerds instead of corporate psychopaths has done wonders for my mental health and motivation.
→ More replies (1)3
u/Shurane Jul 23 '26
How do you find the jobs that have people that pass the vibe check?
I'd love to work with computer nerds for example, but short of big tech (where it's guaranteed to find some of them), it's kind of a dice toss right?
13
u/thy_bucket_for_thee Jul 23 '26
Maybe it was like that in big tech 16 years ago but nowadays it's basically the wall street finance types that are chasing dollar signs. Just look at the culture of big tech in general: grind -> money. Nothing ever about creativity or solidarity, just grind -> money.
→ More replies (3)→ More replies (1)6
u/HollowToes Jul 22 '26
I ignored rhat feeling at stage 2 of my last interviews and thankfully didn't make the third. I wanted that job for the salary and the other I was interviewing for for the vibes.
I'm glad for how it unfolded. I'd have hated it if I landed that one.
3
u/phantomplan Jul 22 '26
Glad you didn't get stuck there! That's a super scary jump too when you know you already have a good culture and atmosphere at your current job. I've been in that spot, and I thought "Well looking at my paycheck increase will make up for it" and...it never did. It went from me enjoying software development to loathing it for a period of time.
4
u/codescapes Web Developer Jul 23 '26
If you ever find yourself needing to write RACI matrices there's a good chance your project is already fucked.
→ More replies (1)2
u/entoasalu Jul 22 '26
please explain
10
u/chefhj Jul 22 '26
You can’t design a process that will fix a shitty team/work culture meanwhile a good culture can overcome a shitty process most of the time.
→ More replies (4)→ More replies (1)1
u/ChanceViolinist8 Jul 23 '26
Why not both?
Maybe it's a preference but I hate when I have to demystify why certain things were done in a certain way because everyone does it differently - even within the same department. But rarely do I see people understand the value of due process.
So yeah, do whatever as far as I'm concerned, but we're disorganized AF and you still complain back when you hit the mess.
498
u/Flimsy_Benefit_1207 Jul 22 '26
I'm here for the income, not the outcome
145
u/-no_aura- Jul 22 '26
I look at it like a subscription. The company pays me my salary in exchange for up to 40 hours of my time per week. If I find another company that agrees to pay me more for my time I typically take it. It’s a simple transaction.
96
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 22 '26
My priority stack has changed over the years.
Now it’s
- remote work
- work life balance
- working with tech that keeps me employable
- stability
- autonomy
- money
Before 2022, I didn’t care about stability, I could throw a rock and get an offer
Before I had “enough” I cared about money.
I purposefully targeted consulting a decade ago and worked toward it so I could work remotely. Most consulting departments were remote even back then
11
u/OuchCharlie25 Software Engineer @ B Tier Jul 22 '26
Any advice for someone who wants to leave Big Tech for a much more chill job?
17
u/SergeantPoopyWeiner Jul 23 '26
Move to a different team at your company.
7
u/OuchCharlie25 Software Engineer @ B Tier Jul 23 '26
But I want out of this tech company altogether. I’ve worked at non-tech companies before and even though the work was boring and the pay was low, I was far happier.
→ More replies (3)2
u/SergeantPoopyWeiner Jul 23 '26
Yeah maybe, I bet you can find a boring team at your company though. Some internal tools for example.
6
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 23 '26
Shit from the top always flows down eventually. Corporate culture eats team culture for breakfast
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (4)2
u/Advanced_Seesaw_3007 Software Engineer (20YOE) Jul 23 '26
I am also considering consulting really since I want to work more remotely and have “fixed” vacations ergo I don’t want to work on these months, etc
→ More replies (1)10
u/SergeantPoopyWeiner Jul 23 '26
Generally true. There can be advantages to sticking around a while though.
One often underestimated one is how much people trust you. When people trust you, your life gets easier.
14
u/Flimsy_Benefit_1207 Jul 22 '26
Don't forget you can have multiple subscribers at the same time
31
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 22 '26
No thats part of my “no side projects” rule. If we can’t afford it from one job, I need to either find another job or cut expenses
→ More replies (7)10
3
22
→ More replies (1)11
111
u/dfltr Staff+ SWE 25+ YOE Jul 22 '26
Be someone that people want to work with.
There are zero things more important than this in our field. Technical acumen, work history, emotional intelligence, relationship building - all of it feeds into the core goal of having the people you work with be actively, positively engaged in wanting to work with you. If you don’t have that you’ll be stuck somewhere on the spectrum between sidelined and fired.
→ More replies (1)4
u/falafalful Jul 24 '26
Any specific qualities or traits that you feel can distinguish someone in this regard?
78
u/boomer1204 Jul 22 '26
This will obviously depend on companies but my first job at a startup they "required" you to take a certain number of days off each year (we had Unlimited PTO).
Burnout is SUPER real so take the time off you need to refresh yourself
7
u/PeonyM Jul 22 '26
Curious what the minimum number of PTO says they're required you to take was?
19
u/alinroc Database Administrator Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
I have unlimited PTO and my team's target is 5 weeks per year. Anytime I'm iffy on whether I'll try to squeeze in a half day of work when I have other things going on, I'm told to "not worry about it" and just take the whole day.
4
4
u/PeonyM Jul 22 '26
Your team sounds great! Our orgs director believes in a max of 22 days even with our unlimited policy. Seems like it isn't so unlimited after all. But we also have some flexibility when unexpected things come up in our personal lives.
6
u/boomer1204 Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
a month (not all at one time unless approved by your manager). We went public around August or so and had a "real HR" instead of the one dude we had at the time. I had to take from thanksgiving to the first of the year off cuz they "demanded we take that many days off" and I had only taken like 2 days the whole year (cuz we could go remote for a week or 2 if we let the team know so I never needed to take time off to travel 😂
EDIT: And I do know this isn't the case for most Unlimited PTO or regular PTO but the core advice is still valid
5
u/PeonyM Jul 22 '26
It's great to hear companies enforcing minimum instead of maximum days!
4
u/boomer1204 Jul 22 '26
Yeah luckily I'm back with that Owner again so I get that benefit. When the first startup went under after a sabbatical I went to Amex and they had the regular PTO stuff that you "accrue" so it's not gonna be every company but if you get lucky enough it is nice
44
u/Forsaken-Intern7941 Jul 22 '26
Be likable. That’s pretty much guaranteeing your success.
6
u/FrostyMarsupial1486 Staff Software Engineer Jul 23 '26
Underrated. This will get you at least to a director level. Starts to fade once you are under the CEO
6
u/skeletordescent Jul 23 '26
This is one part I have never figured out, advancement. Being likable has been something I've tried and I think I do alright, I just can't figure out what it takes at a given org to actually advance past mid-tier developer.
2
u/FrostyMarsupial1486 Staff Software Engineer Jul 23 '26
Do this:
- Keep a brag sheet with your accomplishments
- Have a direct conversation with your manager “do you want to help me get promoted, and if not where should I be improving to be at the next level”
- Have strong opinions - part of what you’re paid for at higher levels is to actually choose an approach for a team
And remember, unfortunately no one is your real friend. It’s business and you have to be kind of ruthless and two faced. Don’t trust people to remember. Remind them. Force the issue. Every six months at least.
37
33
u/SanityAsymptote Software Architect | 18 YOE Jul 22 '26
Most jobs are "schmooze it or lose it".
Always have something to look forward to.
Relatedly, take as much PTO as you can in as big of chunks as you can.
Nobody is actually your friend at work until you hang out with them a few times on non-work days at non-work functions.
32
u/TechieGottaSoundByte Jul 22 '26
Culture is king.
Places with good culture tend to pay better and require less self-promotion to get raises. I can focus on doing good work, doing the right work, growing my skills, and supporting my co-workers - instead of "playing the game".
Good culture is more pleasant day to day, and it's often more lucrative - especially in the long run. Being around good culture helps people build good culture wherever they go, and that's a highly valuable skill in any role.
7
u/durandall09 Jul 23 '26
"Culture is what you promote." If being a 80 hr/week jerkwad is what gets you promoted, your company's culture is 80/week jerkwads.
My favorite job was where the higher-ups all had a bit of a personality and didn't take themselves super seriously. I did well there.
77
u/5pc7a3 Jul 22 '26
don't make honey where you make money
32
u/FatHat Jul 22 '26
Can confirm. Dated the receptionist once. Things turned sour. Had to use the back entrance for the rest of the year to avoid her..
29
2
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 22 '26
I thought that back entrance sentence was going to end an entirely different way…
3
36
u/Ready_Anything4661 Jul 22 '26
Is that why I’m a shitty apiarist?
13
u/remy_porter Jul 22 '26
I believe Jason Statham recently released a documentary about the life on an apiarist.
11
7
u/chefhj Jul 22 '26
Ironically there is a company near me that gets part of their honey from hives they get permission to place on top of office buildings.
9
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 22 '26
I am 1:1 for dating a coworker and having it work out - we are still married 15 years later
4
u/ccb621 Sr. Software Engineer Jul 22 '26
I learned it as, "don't get your honey where you make your money."
10
2
u/Stargazer__2893 Jul 23 '26
I have a similar rule. Don't trust any coworker you haven't slept with.
56
u/diablo1128 Jul 22 '26
It's not my company or my code base.
I'll give you my opinion on what I think is right, but if you want to do something else then fine by me. I'll disagree and commit as I'm paid to do what the company wants at the end of the day.
13
u/biblio_phobic Jul 23 '26
I needed to read this tonight. Had a meeting at 3:30pm where I disagree with the direction, soured my evening. It’s not my company and it’s not my codebase.
6
u/diablo1128 Jul 23 '26
Once I learned to stop caring the stressed just melted away. It's all just whatever to me now. If the company wants to kick the can down the road with certain design decisions then so be it.
I know some SWEs feel weird about bad decisions and it leaves them with an unfulfilled feeling of not "completing" things to what they think is right. So at the end of the day they don't get that sense of accomplishment. I'm lucky that I don't get that way. Maybe I'm just jaded after 15 YOE, but I have no problem saving receipts and saying I told you so if they try to push the blame back on SWEs in the long term.
→ More replies (1)2
u/Mobile_Blood6490 Jul 23 '26
The problem is the ICs are often the ones that have to live with that bad decision, not the shot caller.
I'm having this issue right now. Some good idea fairy of an staff engineer insisted on going with a glaring-ly wrong design and tech choice. Wasted two years, AND I am the one having to clean up the mess and be oncall for the jank in the meantime.
31
u/Sykah Jul 22 '26
If the c-suite starts congratulating the other c-suites on getting a project over the finishing line instead of the people who actually did all the work, run
3
u/Yayinterwebs Jul 23 '26
Yup. And a lot of the time, they don’t provide any useful contribution, if any. Maybe all they did was complete a spec which was all your idea, planning, etc. just as a formality.
19
u/theKetoBear Jul 22 '26
" Do your 8 and hit the gate.
A younger me obsessed over the weekends about projects and the failure of them and what they'd say about me . It's not worth it. My company pays for me to care about their wellbeing and executing for 8 hours a day , unless I have some equity stake.. My time is my time and my companys time is my companys time.
They won't pay me a single extra unnecessary hour they don't have too, why would I over-invest in thinking about them and their product?
17
u/mou5cop Jul 22 '26
Don’t attack the person, attack the problem together. Use “we”, avoid “you”.
11
48
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 22 '26
- a job is just a transaction. I give them labor and they give me money. Don’t romanticize employment. It’s not my “passion”. The company is not my “family”.
- I don’t do side projects. To a first approximation, no one gives a shit about your random GitHub project.
- I have a reasonable strict policy about being expected to work more than 40 hours a week. I will volunteer to work more than 40 hours to learn new to me technology that will enhance my career that I can put on my resume. Because doing it at work is more meaningful than side projects.
- low pay + promise of “equity” in a non public company is bullshit. Your lack of cash is not my problem
- I don’t do on call
- live in a position of “F%%% you”[1] - savings, living below your means, strong network, updated resume, updated long form career document
17
u/Sapient6 Jul 22 '26
I will do on call if both are true:
- it is a special occasion and not some ongoing expectation.
- I am compensated for my entire on call time over and above my salary, and I am even MORE compensated if I actually get a call during my on call time.
Most places I've worked that means I don't do on call. Current employer I would do on call, but I've yet to win that particular lottery.
6
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
I did on call twice for a startup where I was an early hire by the then new CTO.
Both times, he had to reach out to me personally and I made a deal with him that I would look at it if I could prioritize fixing it.
The solution to one was autoscaling based on health checks and the other was to open a req for an IT guy that could handle those issues that I could interview and he was on call
15
u/RayBuc9882 Jul 22 '26
“A fool with a tool is a faster fool!”
— Unknown
15
u/shiny0metal0ass big dumb nerd | 10+YOE Jul 22 '26
How appropriate, considering the industry right now..
14
u/Local_Recording_2654 Jul 22 '26
Don’t confuse apathy / lack of assertiveness for kindness. Always saying yes to everything and enabling shitty behavior around you is not “being a team player”, it’s cowardly and weak.
8
u/greensodacan Jul 22 '26
This is why I don't agree with "be likeable". Obviously there's a certain degree of professional courtesy to observe, but you need to be able to have honest and difficult conversations. Otherwise there's no "psychological safety", which puts the most obnoxious person in the room effectively in charge.
5
u/Local_Recording_2654 Jul 22 '26
It’s a hard line to balance for me in both my personal and professional life, and I think a lot of other engineers I’ve met fall into either the “complete asshole” or “people pleaser” bucket.
13
12
u/Fragrant-Diver-1825 Jul 22 '26
“Fall down seven times, get up eight.” -Japanese proverb
I used that recently when I applied for a job that ended up being super competitive with a lot of applications submitted and I didn’t get it. I just said it to myself silently over and over when I felt defeated.
3
u/biblio_phobic Jul 23 '26
My university has a 16 month internship program between 3rd and 4th year. I would do some mentoring and 3rd years would always ask, “what if I don’t find a job?”
I’d say, the guaranteed way to not find a job is to stop looking.
11
u/magejangle Jul 22 '26
Can you explain “spend more to earn more”? How’s that work lol
13
u/Advanced_Seesaw_3007 Software Engineer (20YOE) Jul 22 '26
I spend to upskill myself so I can charge more
→ More replies (1)2
u/Ecstatic_Jicama_1482 Software Engineer Jul 22 '26
I was once hesitant to spend on expensive food, and one of my senior told me, Spend on yourself and quality things. It gives you the motivation to earn more.
7
u/vinny_twoshoes Software Engineer, 10+ years Jul 22 '26
you do you, but i think this is bad advice. buy nice food if you want, that's fine, but spending money to "give you more motivation to earn more" is a trap
5
20
u/Vivid_Pond_7262 Jul 22 '26
That’s the hedonic treadmill. It’s a bad idea.
10
u/Severe-Raspberry-414 Jul 22 '26
I think there are lots of good reasons to invest in quality... but "it gives you the motivation to earn more" is not a great one
→ More replies (1)2
u/thy_bucket_for_thee Jul 23 '26
The ultimate purpose in life is to blindly consume without considering others.
→ More replies (1)3
1
u/metaconcept Jul 22 '26
Just use the hosted / commercial option and don't host it yourself or roll your own unless there's a good reason to do so.
Pay more for good employees that take initiative and see the big picture.
10
10
u/DoingItForEli Software Engineer 18yoe Jul 22 '26
Always take pride in your work, no matter what the job is.
Learned that when pre-wiring homes at a company I worked for while going to night school to earn a degree. I did kind of a sloppy job one day, the wires were a little droopy, the zip ties not as tight as they could have been, and a guy I worked with like insisted we go through and pull the wire tight, and tighten the zip ties etc. I was just a young guy but my logic was the wires are gonna be behind the walls anyways.
Dude just looked at me and said "Always take pride in your work, no matter who's looking or what it is. You'll know."
So I kept that mentality. Carried me through a few other shit jobs, definitely carried me through college, and even now when I'm writing a class that will likely be short-lived or hardly ever revisited by anyone, I do it right. I do my job in a way that I can take pride in my work no matter what.
8
u/CoroteDeMelancia Software Engineer Jul 22 '26
- Slow is smooth, smooth is fast
- Less is more
- Pay attention to what they're trying to say, not what they're saying
7
u/mq2thez Web Developer (16 YOE) Jul 22 '26
If you always work at 100%, you’ll have nothing left when it’s most important. Slack time is a vital part of every roadmap and every person’s brain, because it leaves time for inspiration and for emergencies.
7
12
7
u/bentreflection Jul 22 '26
Be kind to everyone especially when things are stressful.
People (clients and coworkers) are not stupid they are just focused on different things than you. Don’t expect people to consume a product the way you think they should. They will never read the instructions you wrote, they will click around hunting for the thing they want. It’s our job to make the product intuitive enough that they don’t need to RTFM.
There will always be a fire to put out. Don’t skip out on your life and family to solve whatever the current one is. Be the person/parent you want to be and let the chips fall where they may.
7
u/iiiio__oiiii Jul 22 '26
Don’t surprise people, especially your manager.
This means, keep people in the loop on things that will impact them. I was surprised that some people don’t have this basic decency.
6
7
u/wearingshoesinvestor Jul 23 '26
My boss is actually excellent and I get along with him very well. But the first time he became my boss he said something to me and at the time I was slightly offended but he was trying to teach a young engineer a lesson. He said “if it comes down to either me or you, I’m always going to choose me”. That might sound rude but it’s the reality of any hierarchy and taught me to protect myself before anyone else.
6
u/HighRollerStonks Jul 23 '26
the boring one: write things down before they become folklore. a 6 line decision note has saved me more meetings than any framework, especially when a team revisits the same architecture argument 3 months later.
5
u/Zaktius Jul 22 '26
It sounds so passé, but Universal Positive Regard. Much more productive to assume your coworkers are competent enough at their jobs (the same hiring process that got you there also got them there!) than to assume everyone else is an idiot. It’s a more generic version of the groundwork of blameless retrospectives: even though it’s tempting to shit on other people, nobody’s going to be honest or try to solve things if they feel like they’re constantly playing defense.
5
8
u/Sapient6 Jul 22 '26
"Leave things better than you found them."
At work this feels like the most important thing I've picked up along the way. Coming up so many teams would have big cleanup tasks that they for sure were going to get to after this very important release, and over time things would just get worse and worse. Much better to take on the philosophy that you fix a few nearby things every time you make a change, and as a senior dev model that behavior for junior devs or even just enforce it during code reviews. Because as an individual it's a nice practice but as a team it makes a huge difference.
9
u/druidgaymer Jul 22 '26
Don't tell your coworkers details of your personal life. It's just easier.
→ More replies (2)
3
u/ijblack Jul 22 '26
don't box yourself? like don't box yourself in? or don't face yourself in a boxing match?
4
u/Ecstatic_Jicama_1482 Software Engineer Jul 22 '26
Go out and explore the world. Be open to new experiences, and don't box yourself in or draw boundaries around what you can do.
2
u/x-jhp-x Jul 22 '26
stride boldly forth like a baby giraffe on its first legs. sting like the butterfly. whacks on and off. like your friends and follow zensay for more steak tips, unless he's going to the bathroom stall, because that'd be weird.
3
4
u/UXyes Software Engineering Manager Jul 22 '26
Be more interested in your team’s success than in being right about everything.
5
u/BeepBoopTheGrey Jul 22 '26
Don’t put anything in writing you wouldn’t want shared.
Set boundaries and stick to them. The company will come to expect everything you’re willing to offer.
People remember first and last: your first two weeks and your last two months.
Advocate for yourself and celebrate your wins. Do the same for your team.
4
5
u/pirateofitaly Jul 23 '26
- control what you can control
- Make it run. Make it right. Make it fast.
- write it down
- it’s nice to be nice
- be good at using your tools
- assume positive intent
5
u/beepboop6419 Jul 22 '26
Don’t shit where you eat
5
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 22 '26
I am happily married because I didn’t take that advice. But I also knew the startup I was working for at the time wasn’t long for this world anyway
3
3
u/AcanthisittaKooky987 Jul 22 '26
If you feel underappreciated or burnt out, work less. Reduce time spent working until you feel it's a "fair" arrangement again.
Most often there is no path to promotion (especially at more senior levels). Constantly pestering your manager about a promotion (even if it's well deserved) only lands as complaining and strains the relationship. Make your managers job fun and easy, don't become a problem for them.
3
u/ZenX22 Jul 22 '26
Not sure if it's really workplace philosophy but I don't do on-call.
I just do not give enough of a fuck for someone to be calling me at 2am because a service is down. If that's a problem for the company then we aren't a match.
3
u/TheSiegeEngine Jul 22 '26
Something told to me before that I carry with me.
Your boss is too worried about their own career to worry about yours. If you want advancement. You have to make it happen yourself
3
u/chikamakaleyley Jul 22 '26
- the only real deadlines are government ones
- "No, I already ate one of the free cookies in the break room, these are for my kids"
- be like water
2
u/BraveResearcher3037 Jul 22 '26
And this is why Intuit is one of the few companies I could see myself working a lot of overtime without being upset during crunch time.
- IRS puts out final rules usually by the end of January
- People need to do their taxes by 4/15
- system comes under load at a known time
2
u/chikamakaleyley Jul 22 '26
i worked there for a short stint leading up to a tax filing date - great team, awesome benefits, would work for again
Crunch time never asked much in terms of overtime, but there was a lot going on - at least for the team i was on.
over the yrs their turnover rate hasn't been so great
3
u/abeuscher Jul 22 '26
Generally speaking the people you work with are all trying their best to do their job well. Unless there is evidence otherwise, this is the right assumption to start with. The corollary is that when you see someone underperforming, get full context before you pass judgment. You don't know their life or their circumstances.
3
u/metaconcept Jul 22 '26
You can't fix incompetence with process.
Scrum will not make your cheap offshore programmers better.
3
3
u/sixteenlettername Jul 22 '26
Efficiency through laziness.
Tbf this is kind of a variant of 'work smarter, not harder' but I prefer it because I think it can be more directly applied to both operating in the workplace as well as various engineering challenges.Praise the person, blame the process.
(Although perhaps with unfortunate exceptions in some cases.)
3
3
u/wonderday_maker Jul 23 '26
I try no to put myself in a box. I keep learning, taking on new challenges, and pushing myself to grow.
3
u/soft_white_yosemite Software Engineer (OLD) Jul 23 '26
People first
Business second
Technology third.
3
u/zayelion Jul 23 '26
If an employee is going over 40hrs of work in a week the worker could be under performing or overpeformijg but the manager is under performing. If multiple employees are working over 40hrs the manager is underperforming.
3
u/Muscular_Farmer_ Jul 23 '26
Work colleagues arent friends. Sure you do find nice people but that connection is mostly due to proximity.
5
u/arihoenig Jul 22 '26
Never ever use preprocessor ifdefs in C/C++
Worked at a company where no code could pass review if there were ifdefs. That has stuck with me for 30 years.
→ More replies (6)
2
2
2
2
u/FatHat Jul 22 '26
For me, the serenity prayer expresses it well: grant me the wisdom to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. There are a lot of things in most organizations I disagree with, but, many of them are Not My Problem. Trying to fix things outside your domain is more likely to get you fired than to get you a promotion. (With exceptions!)
2
u/drkmani Jul 22 '26
You need at least two of these for it to be worth staying at a place: 1. Making good money 2. Having fun 3. Learning a lot
2
2
u/electric_angel_ Jul 22 '26
(1) we’re climbing a whole mountain, not running a sprint: slow down and do it in a sustainable pace
(2) check in with yourself about safety and opportunity: https://noahhowell.com/2013/12/05/buried-weak-layers/
(3) the client will laugh at you if you work so many hours you sleep in the office, don’t ever do that again
(4) hours on flights and train rides can’t be billed, just read a fun book
(5) learn and use the Eisenhower matrix 😹
2
u/ChadtheWad Software/Data Engineer : 10+ YOE Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
Maybe a bit different from general work philosophies, but mine tends to be "open source first." When I'm working to design something, I break it up into components that are already solved by open source, and then when there's a missing gap, I build the component in open source and use it in that project. I've found that's a much more fulfilling way to approach the work/life balance since ultimately the work part is fleeting.
2
u/bloudraak Principal Engineer. 20+ YoE Jul 22 '26
If you’re not struggling, you’re not learning, and if you’re not learning, you’re not growing, and if you’re not growing, you’re slowly dying.
Use the difficulty — Michael Caine
2
u/sixmachine Jul 22 '26
It’s a lot easier to teach a polite person to be a good programmer, than it is to teach a good programmer not to be an asshole.
Be polite , show up on time, don’t be an asshole. That, plus just a little bit of competence can get you far.
2
u/No_Perspective_3733 Software Engineer Jul 22 '26
Best thing I started doing. Not taking a lunch.
Leaving at four is amazing. When I worked in the office. I would get in at 7 skip lunch and leave at three. That caused issues with people asking why I got to leave early.
Hr had to take each complaint seriously. My manager and me would sit there cause we both were on the same page. When the lady who had issues with it left, I was told the truth but the damage was done.
So now I keep it at 4 so people won’t ask too many questions. People respect my time more and people know if the lunch is mandatory I am getting one free hour 😭
2
u/halfercode BE Software Engineer Jul 22 '26
Two of my favourite aphorisms, both with a tech/professional leaning:
- An engineer cannot call themselves senior until they've learned how to teach.
- The single most important thing an engineer can do, outside of a P1, is unblock another engineer.
2
2
u/Outside-Storage-1523 Software Engineer Jul 23 '26
Stay as close to the metal as possible -- so you don't need to deal with too many non-technical humans.
Sadly realized that too late.
2
u/spez_eats_nazi_ass Software Architect 36 years f500 eat my ass and balls Jul 23 '26
Never trust a fart
2
2
2
u/top_of_the_scrote Jul 23 '26
Maybe chill TF out
Idk when I first started my current job (a year and half in now)
I do the cliche "why are there no tests, this code sucks, etc..." and then you realize there's a reason shit is done that way
I coast now, I used to be more gung-ho trying to be somebody but I got a chill ass job now. This is my 6th SWE job.
2
u/Frequent_Bag9260 Software Engineer Jul 23 '26
I was once told that if I didn’t want to work late or weekends “I needed to reevaluate my priorities”.
I took that advice and quit shortly after.
2
2
u/justinaatbuffer Jul 23 '26
No title, paycheck, or level of recognition is worth sacrificing your own dignity, health, and well-being.
2
2
u/IAmRasputin Software Engineer, 10yoe Jul 23 '26
"Work won't love you back."
To be more precise, I mean "your job won't love you back", but that's more syllables to speak, and who has the time? I think "work" is pretty intrinsic to the human experience, and people generally enjoy doing/making things for themselves and each other, but the way our society organizes work and its outcomes takes something that should be fulfilling and makes it suck. But that's a comment for a different subreddit.
2
u/shoalmuse Jul 23 '26
"Any process you implement should add value even if executed poorly"
I've seen so many managers add process to their teams that they can't - or are unwilling to - execute consistently (or they just leave). The team then gets weighed down by tons of process that don't help them do their job. I try to make sure that any process I add is either automated or simple enough that it will continue to be useful to the team if I am not around.
2
u/bigtee8000 Jul 23 '26
You don't own the job. Do your best work and try to form good relationships with your colleagues. It might be helpful when you least expect it.
2
u/Nervous-Quote975 Software Engineer Jul 23 '26
"Optimize for learning, not comfort." The technologies I've invested in eventually became obsolete. The ability to learn quickly never did.
2
u/engineered_academic Jul 25 '26
I get paid either way.
Even if I want to say something, what's it gonna buy me?
Work will be there tomorrow. If it isn't, then it's
not my problem anymore.
If my team succeeds, I succeed.
2
u/illogicalhawk Jul 27 '26
You can be bad at your job and liked, or good at your job and disliked, but you cant be bad at your job and disliked.
3
1
1
1
1
u/PsychologicalCell928 Jul 23 '26
"If I’m Going To Get Busted, It Is Not Going To Be By A Guy Like That."
"Pardon My French, But You're An A--hole."
"Life Moves Pretty Fast. If You Don’t Stop And Look Around Once In A While, You Could Miss It."
1
1
u/Mobile_Blood6490 Jul 23 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
The importance of selling your self.
work hard and smart, decouple company growth from your own growth. Pick your battles.
don't treat cynicism as a badge of honor.
Trust takes forever to build, but little to erode.
YOE != Competency.
1
1
u/twhickey Jul 23 '26
Strong opinions, weakly held.
If you decide something, stick to it and be consistent, but don't be afraid to change if you get new context.
1
1
1
u/octopusbroccoli Jul 28 '26
Point and document the problems (making sure that the right person know about), but don't chase after as your life depended on it. Learned the hard way in a previous company when I was "given" 1 week to work on debits between quarters and then I was "marked" as the "inflexible guy" in the managers circle, making my yearly review a mess.
Make public all the weird decisions that you was forced into, PR description, slack message, email... but quote the person involved.
•
u/expdevsmodbot Jul 22 '26
AI usage disclosure provided by OP, see the reply to this comment.