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Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

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Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#241

Post by rramadass »

plank_time wrote: post #79
wiether wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> One of my mentors at the first company I worked for in Silicon Valley never said “no” to one of my ideas. He said “okay, we’ll try it out and see what happens.” He was inherently supportive of new ideas and as a junior engineer it felt very refreshing to not have to argue my way into a feature that I felt strongly about. I’ve carried that same mentality throughout my career. I try to always have this kind of mindse…

There’s a difference between obviously absurd ideas and those that someone can go off and try in their own codebase. Giving some breathing room so people can experiment and try things on their own without disrupting the product is being supportive, in my opinion. It doesn’t mean everything should go in. But I give the person the opportunity to sell their idea. Maybe it’s better than I think, or maybe others on the te…

>It’s the same thing with code reviews. I make a distinction between issues of opinion vs issues of correctness.

Good way of putting it. Too often code reviews devolve into nit-picking and bickering.

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#242

Post by rramadass »

psim1 wrote: post #163

I worked as a student employee in IT at a university department for two years. Upon graduation, I had no job prospects but the department was posting a full-time job for which I was impeccably qualified (it was basically my student job and then some). I applied to it and got the job. Some of my colleagues recognized the transition from student employee to professional, but strangely enough, my own boss never made the…

>I learned from this that some people are always going to see you like they first saw you.

First impressions matter most !

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#243

Post by StavrosK »

gwn7 wrote: post #232
StavrosK wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You are the exception, you know that right? Sure, but I don't agree that touch typing is "the" technique and that it's impossible that someone else has come up with a better one independently. Touch typing is a good way to type well, but I don't think it's distinct from "typing", it's one way to type. Just like you can play the guitar even if you don't know the technique. > - Why do you think you did slow down afte…

Thank you for your detailed answers, I appreciate them. > Sure, but I don't agree that touch typing is "the" technique and that it's impossible that someone else has come up with a better one independently. Touch typing is a good way to type well, but I don't think it's distinct from "typing", it's one way to type. Just like you can play the guitar even if you don't know the technique. I think you have a point here.…

My "disagreement" (I wasn't really disagreeing) is on something you addressed in the original comment: If you're already fast and accurate enough, you don't need to switch to touch typing. I was more offering a counterpoint that some people have independently settled on their own technique that works for them, and that your list of pointers where someone might not need to learn to touch type is indeed correct.

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#244

Post by KozmoNau7 »

Don't base your identity on your job. You are a person with a job, you are not your job.

As an overall observation, the happiest colleagues I've had have been the ones who are good at their jobs and care about producing good results, but also know when to let go, and to decouple their jobs from their personal lives. They were on time, did their jobs well, were good colleagues and always helpful.

Clock in, do good work and be proud of it, clock out.

Some people want to go for the high risk/high reward 70-hour week stressfest, and they always seem to be worse off for it, to try and be in that 0.1% who succeed in the struggle. That's their choice, but it comes at a too high cost.

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#245

Post by gwn7 »

StavrosK wrote: post #243
gwn7 wrote: post #232

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thank you for your detailed answers, I appreciate them. > Sure, but I don't agree that touch typing is "the" technique and that it's impossible that someone else has come up with a better one independently. Touch typing is a good way to type well, but I don't think it's distinct from "typing", it's one way to type. Just like you can play the guitar even if you don't know the technique. I think you have a point here.…

My "disagreement" (I wasn't really disagreeing) is on something you addressed in the original comment: If you're already fast and accurate enough, you don't need to switch to touch typing. I was more offering a counterpoint that some people have independently settled on their own technique that works for them, and that your list of pointers where someone might not need to learn to touch type is indeed correct.

Thank you for the clarification.

> If you're already fast and accurate enough, you don't need to switch to touch typing.

I agree.

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#246

Post by yesenadam »

gwn7 wrote: post #105
beforeolives wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I never understood this way of thinking about touch typing as a distinct skill from typing. My experience was that when you're kid and use a computer for the first time, you need to look at the keys, and then over time you look less and eventually you can type without looking at all. I never saw it as a distinct skill that needs it's own name or needs to be taught in school (apparently I'm wrong about this). It's jus…

> I never understood this way of thinking about touch typing as a distinct skill from typing. Touch typing is a special technique. Typing and touch typing being distinct things isn't a "way of thinking", it's a clear fact. It's not open to interpretation. The keyboard is an instrument. Anyone can use it without learning the proper technique, but the technique helps a great deal. That's the whole point. It is greatly…

I'm not sure why one system of typing gets to call itself "the proper technique". Someone made up a system and to promote it called it "the proper technique", I guess.

Also, I don't think that on guitar there is any such thing as "the proper technique". (Musician here.) Different people play the instrument very differently—even within genres, let alone between them. But perhaps guitar was a bad example.

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#247

Post by [deleted] »

gwn7 wrote: post #233
sombremesa wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This type of obsession with something that completely ignores facts is not healthy. The arc of the universe is long, but it bends towards efficiency. There’s a reason we’re not all learning touch typing and using Dvorak keyboards.

It's funny. Do you realize that your comment has no content? You speak like a politician. You're just attacking without really saying anything. Maybe answer: - What makes you call this an "obsession"? There's just a remark and an inquiry. Please point out the obsession part, if you can. - Ignores which facts? You are responsible with providing at least some of them if you want to be a part of the discussion, do you r…

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#248

Post by sombremesa »

gwn7 wrote: post #233
sombremesa wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This type of obsession with something that completely ignores facts is not healthy. The arc of the universe is long, but it bends towards efficiency. There’s a reason we’re not all learning touch typing and using Dvorak keyboards.

It's funny. Do you realize that your comment has no content? You speak like a politician. You're just attacking without really saying anything. Maybe answer: - What makes you call this an "obsession"? There's just a remark and an inquiry. Please point out the obsession part, if you can. - Ignores which facts? You are responsible with providing at least some of them if you want to be a part of the discussion, do you r…

My comment does have content, but it wasn’t for you.

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#249

Post by veddox »

lostcolony wrote: post #29

To change anything you have to be responsible, empowered, and knowledgeable about it. If you only have one or two of them, seek out the others. If you can't attain all three, stop worrying about it; you can't change it. Transparency leads to trust, but also can be abused. Be transparent in incremental steps, so that you still build trust with those that are trustworthy, and so you aren't hurt too badly by those that…

> To change anything you have to be responsible, empowered, and knowledgeable about it.

What do you mean by those that?

Re: Ask HN: What lessons did you learn from your best or worst colleagues?

#250

Post by gwn7 »

sombremesa wrote: post #248
gwn7 wrote: post #233

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's funny. Do you realize that your comment has no content? You speak like a politician. You're just attacking without really saying anything. Maybe answer: - What makes you call this an "obsession"? There's just a remark and an inquiry. Please point out the obsession part, if you can. - Ignores which facts? You are responsible with providing at least some of them if you want to be a part of the discussion, do you r…

My comment does have content, but it wasn’t for you.

Yes, your "content" includes an ad hominem and a straw man. And still you are choosing not to answer my questions to clarify your points, but trying to taunt me. Obviously because you don't have an answer. You are not very smart and not worth my time. Bye bye
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