For the last couple of weeks, I rarely wrote code and instead focused on the bigger problems: crafting a vision and driving cross-functional projects. Unfortunately, I started losing the sense of progress as these complex projects happen over multiple quarters, not in hours or days. So I spent last Thursday and Friday coding a bit, and I felt so much better afterward.
If I want to tackle important and difficult problems, I need to learn how to stay motivated without daily dopamine hits from coding. I will bring that up with my manager tomorrow and seek advice.
Software Engineering ⚙️
GraphQL WG Notes – May 2021
I went to my first industry-wide working group meeting last week. I was both excited and nervous about being in the same room with the folks like Lee Byron and Benjie Gillam. Being recorded didn’t help either. But the great news is that the group fully recognized the problem the nullability proposal tries to solve and advanced the proposal to Stage 1.
Announcing Rome Tools, Inc.
Rome, started by the creator of Babel, plans to be the one toolchain to solve all your frontend development needs. Now it has a backing company. It’s unclear how they plan to make money yet.
People ❤️
Strategic Prioritization Using Even Over Statements
Prioritization isn’t about a choice between the good and the bad. It’s about a choice between two different good options. If we aren’t ruthless, we will end up with a wishlist, not a priority list.
Is it a bad job or just a bad day?
Until I got my green card recently, I never had the liberty to quit whenever I wanted. So I am struggling with what conditions warrant a job change. “🧩 The Future Alignment Lens” from the article helped clarify my thinking, especially this question: “Am I spending my time on activities (coding, designing, selling, etc.) that I want to master?”
Caring Makes or Breaks an Engineering Organization
The term “caring” seems to be the equivalent of “engagement.” But I prefer the former since it is much easier to picture what it means. We need to see if we care about our company, co-workers, and ourselves.
How angry Apple employees’ petition led to a controversial new hire’s departure
One can’t insult half the population and expect to have no repercussions. One must own up to it or own the circumstances.
Business 💸
South Korean internet giants battle for top spot in web comics
Webcomics in Korea has been a source for many compelling IPs; many hit movies and TV shows such as Along with the Gods, Kingdom, or Sweet Home are based on webcomics. Creating a new IP used to be a risky investment. But the open webcomics platforms turned it into a business opportunity.
youngk.im 