Pushing back as a programmer #programmer

If you have a manager that is fighting anxiety due to feelings of urgency, handling it as a programmer works best when you use future pacing.

#softwaredevelopment #softwareengineer

[kenito]

Thanks Jayme - I agree 100%. I have a manager who up until about 6 months ago, always had a habit of dropping ASAP projects on me. Then, I started pushing back saying that every project he delegated has been "ASAP" and that I'm exhausted. I basically said that there needs to be better planning. After this conversation (on chat), I noticed that this manager stopped dropping "ASAP" projects on me. Going further, you are correct when you say that starting a project "immediately" without understanding the requirements is NOT a good practice. As a QA automation engineer, I have learned that it is better to push back and ask (demand) requirements before you start the project. Otherwise, the same anxious manager will blame you when the project does not meet the customer's requirements.

[samrazi]

This is literally the normal state of our craft. In 30 years doing this, I have yet to succeed in getting the “anxious” management to understand the points you just made. I have come to the conclusion that the vast vast majority of non-technical “leaders” either just don’t get it, or don’t care to get it. If you give them the honest and sensible reasoning you providing you either get this glazed look, as if they are tuning out, or you are automatically a “naysayer”. It stinks. But we still have to try to get them to understand. Thanks for this video.

[Jaybearno]

I literally just had this convo with my manager at a new job. I made the mistake of jumping in despite knowing better. Except after you start, it just validates bad assumptions and then it's even harder to question it.

[prasad_yt]

Your point of view is right and will work mostly only with people that have confidence in your abilities or have had a past experience of working with you.

However if that is not the case - they will quickly jump to conclusion that you may perhaps be good enough for the job or you don’t get it. Especially if the person making the decision doesn’t have a good technology background or awareness- they will simply skip you.

And they will probably burn their hands and then learn from that 😂

P.S - It is also possible that some top level guys or he must have already sold the idea and then he doesn’t want to go back and accept his mistake

[factorfitness]

Everyone wants results - far fewer want to expend the time and effort to do things well. Rushing something almost always leads to having to do it again, just with lost time. Or you get stuck in the "implement, fail, support the failure forever" loop.

[alichamas]

When upper management push for things fast there's often a business case, unfortunately high level business cases don't always align with reality in terms of good opportunity for engineers. Good strategy in terms of making it "our" problem not just "mine".

[AlexeyRoslyakov]

I am burn
ed out. Now I have shload of time to learn how to say NO

[JGComments]

This is exactly what's happening to me right now and I'm going to be blamed. Maybe I will finally learn the lesson.

[pencilcheck]

Ouch back is important, but you need a tech lead that actually can push back, if you are just a senior dev you have very little say in terms of push back