Catalytic Skills for More Effective and Fulfilling Software Development
Being an effective software developer requires so much more than coding ability. Whether you're rallying support for a new tool, negotiating tradeoffs with a designer, or providing feedback in a code review, effective communication is key. Even in the actual code, activities like choosing variable names and designing APIs require empathy for other developers. Motivating ourselves and managing stress are also important skills for a developer. Sadly, skills like communication, empathy, and introspection are too often dismissed as "soft skills," which makes them seem weaker and less important than "hard" technical skills. It's time to change that. These skills actually help us to acquire new technical skills more efficiently, to decide which tools to use, and to share our technical expertise with others. In other words, they help us catalyze the development and application of our technical skills. In this session, you'll learn about catalytic skills and leave with a practical framework for growing them and applying them to become a more effective—and happier—developer. Delivered August 28, 2018 at Pluralsight LIVE 2018
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Catalytic Skills for More Effective and Fulfilling Software Development
- 1. CATALYTIC SKILLS FOR DEVELOPERS April Wensel Founder of Compassionate Coding THERE’S NOTHING “SOFT” ABOUT THESE SKILLS @APRILWENSEL
- 3. THERE’S A LOT OF SUFFERING IN THE SOFTWARE INDUSTRY @APRILWENSEL
- 7. @APRILWENSEL WHY SOFTWARE PROJECTS FAIL 17% 21% 22% 23% 32% 37% 40% 48% Changing or poorly documented requirements Underfunding or under-resourcing Poor team or organizational management Insufficient time allocated to testing Developer churn and loss of key talent Missed delivery timeline expectations Time constraints and pre-mature software release Immature dev tools & application platforms https://www.developersalliance.org/developer-insights-report-2015/
- 8. @APRILWENSEL WE DON’T CARE ENOUGH ABOUT HUMANS
- 9. “CONFESSIONS OF A RECOVERING JERK PROGRAMMER” @APRILWENSEL https://medium.com/compassionate-coding/confessions-of-a- recovering-jerk-programmer-b9d531a05ea9
- 12. “THE FEELING THAT ARISES WHEN YOU ARE CONFRONTED WITH ANOTHER’S SUFFERING AND FEEL MOTIVATED TO RELIEVE THAT SUFFERING” @APRILWENSEL https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/topic/compassion/definition COMPASSION
- 15. • SIGN OF WEAKNESS • LESS IMPORTANT THAN “HARD” SKILLS •JUST FOR MANAGERS • SUGARCOATING • BEING FAKE • WOMEN’S WORK • MANIPULATIVE • PLAYING POLITICS “SOFT” SKILLS @APRILWENSEL
- 18. @APRILWENSEL “AN AGENT THAT PROVOKES OR SPEEDS SIGNIFICANT CHANGE OR ACTION” CATALYST https://www.flickr.com/photos/katerha/5703151566 https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/catalyst
- 19. CATALYTIC SKILLS @APRILWENSEL the fundamental human skills that help us acquire other skills and engage more effectively with the world
- 20. EXAMPLE: JAVASCRIPT IS A SKILL. THE CATALYTIC SKILLS OF FOCUS AND PERSISTENCE WILL HELP YOU ACQUIRE THIS SKILL FASTER. @APRILWENSEL
- 21. EXAMPLE: SPEAKING AND LISTENING ARE SKILLS. THE CATALYTIC SKILL OF EMPATHY WILL HELP YOU USE THESE SKILLS TO RESOLVE CONFLICTS MORE EFFECTIVELY. @APRILWENSEL
- 23. A TALE OF TWO DEVELOPERS @APRILWENSEL
- 30. ARRIVING AT WORK
- 31. @APRILWENSEL@APRILWENSEL ARRIVING AT WORK
- 33. MORNING MEETING
- 34. MORNING MEETING
- 36. FEATURE WORK
- 37. FEATURE WORK
- 38. FEATURE WORK
- 44. SELF-AWARENESS MINDFULNESS EMOTIONAL MANAGEMENT SERVICE ORIENTATION GROWTH MINDSET @APRILWENSEL
- 47. EMPATHY SOCIAL AWARENESS EMOTIONAL MANAGEMENT SERVICE ORIENTATION @APRILWENSEL
- 51. IMPULSE CONTROL INTROSPECTION SOCIAL AWARENESS GROWTH MINDSET @APRILWENSEL
- 52. WHICH ONE DO YOU WANT TO BE? @APRILWENSEL
- 53. WHICH ONE DO YOU WANT WORK WITH? @APRILWENSEL
- 54. YOU HAVE THE POWER TO CATALYZE POSITIVE CHANGE ON YOUR TEAM AND IN YOUR LIFE @APRILWENSEL
- 55. 1. SLOW DOWN 2. OBSERVE YOURSELF & OTHERS 3. REFLECT ON WAYS TO IMPROVE 4. IMPLEMENT CHANGES @APRILWENSEL TO GROW YOUR CATALYTIC SKILLS
- 56. 1. SLOW DOWN 2. OBSERVE YOURSELF & OTHERS 3. REFLECT ON WAYS TO IMPROVE 4. IMPLEMENT CHANGES @APRILWENSEL TO GROW YOUR CATALYTIC SKILLS
- 57. @APRILWENSEL
- 58. STAY CURIOUS ABOUT HOW YOU OPERATE AND HOW OTHERS OPERATE @APRILWENSEL
- 61. @APRILWENSEL OUR WORK CAN BE JOYFUL AND FULFILLING THE MAJORITY OF THE TIME–WHY SETTLE FOR ANYTHING LESS?
- 62. BURNOUT PREVENTION COURSE COMING SOON! NEWSLETTER COMPASSIONATECODING.COM @COMPASSIONCODE @APRILWENSEL APRIL@COMPASSIONATECODING.COM THANK YOU!