The document discusses the author's journey to become less of a jerk in his software development career. Over 15 years, he has filled many roles including developer, manager, architect, product owner, and agile coach. Initially, he focused too much on being right rather than how he presented information and empowered others. He has since learned the importance of understanding different perspectives, continual self-improvement, and viewing teammates as people rather than just coworkers. Now, he focuses on empowering others and creating team ownership while acknowledging there are multiple valid views.
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Being Right is Not Enough - GOTO Night April 18th, 2019
1. Being Right is Not Enough
My ongoing quest to be less of a jerk.
Zachary L. Beer
Manager of DevOps and Agile Strategy
InRule Technology
April 18, 2019
2. Who I am
Nearly fifteen years
working in software
development
I’ve filled nearly every
role in a development
team
Developer
Tech lead / manager
Architect
Product owner
Scrum master
Agile coach
External consultant
32. Being right is not enough
How you present information is more important than the information you
present
Just because we’re individually successful doesn’t mean we the team was
successful
Empowering others to answer questions you’ve already answered creates
ownership
A solution may seems obvious, but it may impact others differently
33. Being right is not enough
Stuff doesn’t just happen to you, your actions are a part of that experience
Your opinion isn’t the only one, even if it’s the most correct
Get to know your teammates and superiors beyond work; think of them as
people first
You’re not going to be perfect immediately – focus on getting better
34. How to find me!
Email: zacharylbeer@gmail.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zlbeer/
Slideshare.NET: https://www.slideshare.net/ZacharyBeer
Twitter: @zacharylbeer
InRule: https://www.inrule.com
Twitter: @inrule
Notas do Editor
7th grade hockey
Why: I did the “right” thing and regretted it the rest of my life.
Key learning: This stuff matters, even if you don’t realize it in the moment.
7th grade hockey
Why: I did the “right” thing and regretted it the rest of my life.
Key learning: This stuff matters, even if you don’t realize it in the moment.
Let’s start with the early 20th century
Henry Ford modernized factory work with mass production factories
Factories don’t care about the input of the workers
Most of our leadership methods are still based on factory work
Jump forward to the 1970s
Software problems are largely confined to a single person
So many constraints!
Technical: storage, processing power, display depth, sound production
Non-technical: Shipping, cost to consumers, shared knowledge
Modern software creation
There are no fixed paths
There are almost no constraints
The paths that do exist, people don’t agree on
Agile, DevOps, Scrum, post-Agile – they’re all trying to solve the same problem
Today, more than ever, software creation and maintenance is a team sport.
Story: I hurt a coworker’s feelings because I needed to be right
Why: I wanted to ensure the quality of our product
Key learning: How you present information is more important than the information you present.
Story: I hurt a coworker’s feelings because I needed to be right
Why: I wanted to ensure the quality of our product
Key learning: How you present information is more important than the information you present.
Story: I embarrassed co-workers to protect my team
Why: I had my team’s best interests at heart
Key learning: We don’t exist in a vacuum, we must work with everyone else to be successful
Story: I embarrassed co-workers to protect my team
Why: I had my team’s best interests at heart
Key learning: We don’t exist in a vacuum, we must work with everyone else to be successful
Story: I didn’t embrace positive change because I wasn’t ready to listen
Why: I dismissed an opinion because the source was problematic
Key learning: You must separate the source from the opinion
Story: I didn’t embrace positive change because I wasn’t ready to listen
Why: I dismissed an opinion because the source was problematic
Key learning: You must separate the source from the opinion
I became frustrated because I wasn’t getting the results I wanted
I wasn’t getting the opportunities I felt I earned
The opportunities I was getting usually turned out poorly
I felt like the common thread was me
At the same time, my marriage was falling apart
My wife discovered her dream career was a nightmare
I didn’t know how to support her
We were rapidly growing apart
I started being much more introspective
I started seeing a therapist
It forced me to work through my problems rather than running away from them
How was *I* contributing to the problems I was experiencing?
Story: Designing towards positive change as a group
Why: People embraced my solution because I let them arrive at the same conclusion
Key learning: People fear change until they understand how change benefits them
Story: Designing towards positive change as a group
Why: People embraced my solution because I let them arrive at the same conclusion
Key learning: People fear change until they understand how change benefits them
Story: I was fired because I didn’t understand my boss’s needs
Why: Getting better is a process; you need to be holistic in your understanding
Key learning: The system is bigger than what’s immediately in front of you.
Story: I was fired because I didn’t understand my boss’s needs
Why: Getting better is a process; you need to be holistic in your understanding
Key learning: The system is bigger than what’s immediately in front of you.
I own my sh*t
I learned what makes me happy, sad, and mad
I understand what gives me energy and what saps it
If I have a negative interaction, I apologize for it – even if I don’t think it’s my fault
I became interested in *why* I have good/bad interactions
I seek to understand
When someone seems wrong, I ask a probing question (e.g. “That’s interesting! Why lead you to that decision?”)
I’m sincere in wanting to understand their point of view
I admit I may not have all the answers
I try to build trust
Think of it as a bank: You must make deposits before you can make a withdraw
I care about your teammates beyond their immediate value to me
I try to be myself, even if being myself is really hard
MOST OF ALL: I put away your cell phone and make a conscious effort to immerse myself in the other person’s perspective
I try to practice what I preach
More than five years later, I still see my therapist every other week
I have a coach I speak to every other week
I mentor a handful of folks in the community
Coaching!
Feb 2018, hired at InRule to increase engagement within the development staff
Small company, engineering/product is less than 20 people
Head of product who only cared about his own opinion; engineers had largely checked out
Spent the first couple of months listening, trying to understand the culture
The rest of the year was enforcing agile concepts, improving communication, coaching critical personnel
End of year, removed head of product, blowing the whole thing up
Everything now is about creating shared context and collaboration
How you present information is more important than the information you present
Just because we’re individually successful doesn’t mean we the team was successful
Sometimes the most difficult sources have the best ideas
Empowering others to answer questions you’ve already answered creates ownership
A solution may seems obvious, but it may impact others differently