Software Enginering Sherpa
Being a software engineering manager is a jarring transition from being a software engineer.
Suddenly instead of unfeeling computers doing exactly what you tell them to do, you’re tasked with managing people - messy organic constructs that act squirrely and have ideas of their own.
Some of them might even be trying to program you.
The failure mode of this transition is burnout - for yourself and for the team you manage.
It’s why so many engineering managers bounce from the job and back to the warm embrace of computers and code.
On the other side is a great job, though - one where you get to grow the careers of countless engineers and unlock personal growth for yourself.
I know firsthand. I started managing software engineers twenty years ago and have done so in contexts from legacy media companies, to advertising agencies and venture funded startups.
This weekly newsletter is all about helping software engineering managers grow into the job, grow their team, and still make space and time for themselves.
As a final note, if you’re having a rough day, hang in there.
I hear tomorrow is going to be awesome …