Easily one of the most difficult things I had to learn as a developer is this: Estimating my time accurately There are key questions to ask, unforseen issues that arise, and fickle client requirements and changes. About 4 years ago I changed the way I build my proposals and estimates for projects. I no longer sell hours. […]
“A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan next week.” or “How I learned to stop dithering and make a decision” I have probably mentioned it before, but the best career advice I’ve ever gotten came from a mentor of mine who told me: “You are very persistent, but you […]
I’ve been thinking about this quite a bit lately. Why do so many pro athletes experience what they call “The Sophomore Slump”? In case you aren’t familiar with it, The Sophomore Slump is the idea is that a rookie comes in to the league has a great first season, exceeding anyone’s expectations and when the next […]
Fellow guitar players will surely read the title of this post and say “what the hell does a weird guitar chord have to do with this nerd blog?” Well, I was trying to find an alternate voicing for the F#ms sus4 because the rest of the thing I was working on was way up the […]
Admittedly, I’m no Harvard MBA and my own understanding of the business world is quite literally my own, but I’ve made it a point to listen closely to some pretty amazing people I know when they drop nuggets of wisdom. One of those was uttered by a good friend who had been the Cheif Marketing […]
Every once in a while I find myself getting a little burned-out on the day-to-day “stuff” of running a business, keeping my clients happy and coding like a madman. It usually manifests itself in the following way: I look for reasons NOT to do the mundane stuff that is waiting, tapping its watch (like my […]
With Independence Day right around the corner, I thought I’d yammer a bit on freedom and my genuine appreciation of it as it relates to my work. I promised myself I would do this without inserting my political views, so if this feels a tad restrained, that’s why. Please forgive me. Many amazing ideas are […]
It’s an age-old IT question: Build vs. Buy. Two distinct choices when solving a problem with software. Most good software comes about as a result of existing software only doing 80% of what somebody needs it to do. Solve 80% of the problem you set out to solve and you’re probably in good shape. That number goes […]
Steve Jobs once claimed (sadly, near the end of his life) that Apple didn’t have committees. Zero “decision by committee” that too-often dooms really good ideas. My favorite quote from the above interview: “Good ideas have to win.” It’s such a great concept that anyone who’s ever been a member of a technical team can easily […]
No doubt there are advantages to staying the course and continuing to look at the world the way everyone else does. It’s predictable, and most businesses LOVE predictability. Makes sense, right? Now, I am not a classically-trained developer (I’m not a classically-trained anything, for that matter) and most of what I’ve learned about technology has been […]