Blink Estimation

Blink Estimation
16 minutes by Dan North

Experienced delivery folks can have surprisingly good instincts for macro-level estimation, as long as we are careful to manage blind spots and cognitive biases. This can be an important tool in early project investment discussions, and can remove roadblocks where people are uncomfortable or unwilling to provide estimates.

• Experienced individuals can provide surprisingly accurate estimates based on their gut and past experiences.

• This estimation shifts the focus from precise time and effort estimates to investment discussions.

• Successful blink estimation requires skilled communicators to pass the results to stakeholders.

Feature Flags For The Whole Team
sponsored by DevCycle

DevCycle’s feature flag management platform helps you ship faster, release with confidence, and manage flags at scale. Our feature flags integrate seamlessly with your workflow so that you can ship faster alongside the tools you already love. And with our usage-based pricing, you’ll have unlimited seats for the whole team.

The Journey to Staff Engineer
10 minutes by Jordan Cutler

Focus on making your work visible within your organization, build robust relationships with colleagues and stakeholders, develop leadership skills to influence others, take on high-impact and complex projects, persevere through setbacks, understand the business impact of your contributions, consider a portfolio approach to your work, and continuously learn and adapt to new challenges.

Leadership is a Research Project
9 minutes by Judd Antin

Judd emphasizes that effective leaders are relentless investigators of human dynamics, both within and outside their teams, and how this focus on understanding people and social interactions is crucial for leadership success.

Growth in a downturn: progression when you can't progress
7 minutes by James Stanier

Firstly, concentrate on what you can control, such as the narrative you set with your team members and the support you offer them. Be honest about the promotion process and factors beyond your control, like budget constraints. Secondly, invest in increasing your impact and skills even if immediate promotions are not available. Consider creating a "workback plan" with your manager to outline your future impact goals. This proactive approach positions you for promotions when conditions improve, making you a strong candidate with valuable experience and knowledge.

Never say "no," but rarely say "yes."
8 minutes by Jason Cohen

"Focus" requires saying "no" to most things, but there's a way to do it that allows you to say "yes" exactly when it matters most.

Set the conditions of “yes” such that:

1. If they say “yes,” you’re happy because the terms or money are so good, it more than compensates for the distraction, perhaps funding the thing you really want to do.

2. If they say “no,” you’re happy because it wasn’t a great fit anyway; it’s not a worthwhile return on your time and effort.