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diff --git a/memos/WM-041.txt b/memos/WM-041.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..74dbb4d --- /dev/null +++ b/memos/WM-041.txt @@ -0,0 +1,330 @@ + + + + + + + +Document: WM-041 P. Webb +Category: Career 2019.09.24 + + A decade in tech: a retrospective + +Abstract + + Startups are hard, respect is easy + +Body + + 1. The Beginning + + I got my start in the web/tech space over a decade ago, during the + economic recession of 2008. + + Two years prior I was in college for a couple months until Johnson + & Wales' campus police called to let me know I'd need to leave by + the end of the week. Unbeknownst to me the college fund that was + *allegedly* prepared for me never existed (!!) and the funny thing + about bounced checks is, *no one likes them*; especially an + institution that needs to pay its faculty. Anyhoo, in 2008 I was + tasked with "getting myself back into school" *somehow* and was + sent to the next town over from JWU to start. + + My landlord, a portly self-deprecating guy with a glass eye and a + heart of friggin' *gold*, allowed me stay rent free as long as I + kept him up to date with my job search progress. In my downtime I + perused online communities like deviantART and Pixelfuckers + (defunct) and attempted to emulate what I saw in the awesome + desktop modding scene. That led to attempting vector art and boy, + this was frustrating as hell to learn. Photoshop's pen tool just + did not make sense at *all* and Illustrator was too strange. One + day…it clicked. I could do it! + + 📸[2nd Vector][IMG1][1] + + Yes, revel in this *monstrosity*. Admire it. *Fear* it (the later + version[2]) of this looks *way* better). + + At some point I was designing so much[3] that I decided I needed a + website, naturally. I mocked something in Photoshop and emailed a + PSD to HTML service to see how much it would cost to convert my + "super awesome" design to a website and I was quoted either $100 + or $500. Whichever amount it was, I was *incensed*. Furious, even. + Couldn't they see I was trying to start something? Why would they + charge me so much? The au*dacity* of these people! + + In my anger, I learned how to code my first website[FOOT1]. + + Yes. I was petulant and figured it out because I was misguided in + my anger at someone/some people trying to run a business in a + recession. It sounds quite silly in hindsight but, there you + have it. + + At that point I also understood that web design and development is + not something easily done *correctly*. Doesn't it make sense why + someone would charge to do it for you? Armed with this newfound + knowledge I dove into the Internet head first and scoured it for + web development tips. Often, these tips came from horribly + designed websites 🥴. Indeed there was a time before Envato and + their Tuts+ tutorial sites burst onto the scene. + + 2. I Made It + + Sometime in 2012 I was working retail and applying for web + design/development roles I was *definitely* not suited for but + YOLO (pretty sure YOLO wasn't said then but y'know, same energy)! + Just fire and forget, leave for work, come back home and check + email. One day I got a response back from thoughtbot[4], a + design/development agency in Downtown Crossing (Boston)! One of + the co-founders wanted me to come in and interview for their + apprenticeship program. Elated, I made the trek downtown with my + heavy laptop and couldn't wait to show off my work. + + My elation disappated when Chad Mazolla[5] said (paraphrasing, too + long ago): + + > Your code is terrible…but your design is good. Great, even! We + > need more stuff like this on the Internet. + + And with that, I was in! The program lasted a few short months and + while I was the only one who wasn't offered a job through + thoughtbot or their partner companies afterward, I will say that + it was the best experience I could have had at that point in my + life. If nothing else, I finally had something I could put on my + non-retail resume! + + Over the next couple years I would go on to do contract jobs and + later work for startup after startup after startup. I've worked + for a "regular" company here and there but end up going back to + startups. Even though they come with uncertainty[FOOT2], they are + often working on challenging ideas and projects that can change + some aspect of the world in interesting ways. I'm drawn to that. I + also love learning how to do things I either don't feel like + learning on my own time or never thought about learning. *The best + teacher is experience so why not *get paid* to do it?* This allows + you to initiate ambitious side projects solo instead of + waiting/relying on someone else to get an MVP running. + + Perhaps more important than the technical skills acquired, I + learned how *not* to treat people. Sometimes this was an + analysis[6] of *my own behavior* but more often than not the + actions of *leadership* exemplified this. + + 3. Scenarios + + The following scenarios are situations I've been on the receiving + end of. + + - You're an apprentice and a developer mentoring someone else in + the program regularly talks over you and pumps up his apprentice + whenever he can. Maybe his disdain for you is because you're + self-taught or was personally invited by the co-CEO to join the + program. Or maybe the developer didn't like you having regular + conversation with the (female) office manager. You're new, you + just want to absorb information from everywhere. + - You learn many years later that this same developer also + treated prospective clients quite rudely. + + - CEO picks his nose and makes eye contact with you. This happens + enough that you learn how to have a blind spot whenever you turn + your head and see him in your peripheral vision. + + - As a contractor, you end up doing the job of the guy you're + reporting under while he browses Joystiq[7] for gaming news. You + are later fired and realize he threw you under the bus for his + work not getting done. *Many* years later you see him in a + Target department store and after recognizing you he discovers a + sudden interest in ceiling architecture. + + - As you're dealing with the excrutiating sorrow of miscarriage, + the CEO puts you on a dubious "project" for his father's + company. A week or two later you're in a firing meeting, sans + CEO. In the minutes following the firing you look around for the + CEO to have a conversation with him but he's nowhere to be + found, even though you just saw him five minutes prior. + + - CEO constantly lies to you and your coworkers about the health + of the company and surprises y'all a week or so from Christmas + *on pay day* with "Hey, sorry, we can't pay you" phone call. + Money eventually shows up but this happens at least once more + before the company folds. + + - CEO loves your work and mindset and tasks you with unleashing + your creativity on core properties. Then come caveats. You + create something cool, you guess, with caveats because core + users would be "confused" by drastic changes. A month or so + later, CEO okays a developer *not* hired for their design + sensibilities to drastically redesign the core product. CEO + reiterates your importance while restricting your expression. + + - You notice there's someone on the platform you are helping + develop who has advocated for harm and negative energy towards + people who share your creed/likeness/ethnicity. You get on a + call with the CEO and he not only downplays the matter but he + disregards how you feel about it. He also claims + organizations like SPLC[8] are disengenous and + blow things out of proportion. + + These scenarios are situations I've witnessed and/or stepped in to + defend/protect. + + - Designers wrack their brains over new features and present to UX + lead for her expert opinion. Idea gets shut down due to claim by + lead over "impossible"[FOOT3] claims. + - I walk by and overhear the designers speaking amongst + themselves, bummed about yet another idea that *seems* + feasible but apparently "isn't". + - I create a branch and implement their idea in ~10 minutes. + Designers are happy, UX lead is not. + - To be clear, this doesn't add extra work for anyone but me. + + - Back-end engineers who want something done on the front-end + approach UX lead. "Too much work", "not worth it", "impossible", + and so on is claimed. + - I'm present during this conversation and rattle off similar + experiences I've had in my personal projects that relate. + - Developers are happy, UX lead is not. + - No extra work for anyone but me and it's not an + obscene amount. + + - At an annual all-hands event, CTO speaks about how he learned + the importance of listening from a leadership course he's been + taking. 10 minutes later, CEO blames entire company (and himself + but not really) for our lack of innovation leading to the + then-(still?)negative status of the company while the CTO stares + at the ground in deep thought. + - A developer protests accusation and mentions several instances + where he tried to provide input, only to be shut down by CEO. + - Conversation turns into a shouting match. + - Other developers jump in to co-sign the initial protest. + - You later learn that some developers at the company ignore the + CEO and pursue things *they* know they need to work on. + + - Marketing team repeatedly express frustration with lack of + non-developer-friendly tooling for things like updating the + company blog, sending email blasts, and so on. CEO is a + technical developer and regularly dismisses them, starting + sentences with things like "It's so easy" and "All you have to + do is…c'mon, it's not so bad." + - I don't have much to do so I offer to improve some aspects of + their job. After initial pushback I'm begrungingly allowed to + do so. + - Two days later, I'm tasked with going about this process with + caveats (and throwing away substantial work in the process). + + - CEO has something negative to say about anyone who quits. "He + wasn't that great anyway" and things like that, often on + conference calls. + + These are all the scenarios I could list off the top of my head. + I'm a positive person by nature so this was an uncomfortable walk + down Memory Lane. + + For people in the web/tech space, the aforementioned scenarios are + quite common. Heck, I'm quite sure they echo what happened *today* + somewhere…and you witnessed it. A common thread that links the + leadership mentioned (aside from the CTO) is apathy; a complete + lack of empathy, social understanding/awareness, or just *care*. + In the comment about my self analysis earlier, I linked a blog + post where I realized I put my ego before the team I was hired to + work with. I was, quite frankly, a jackass[FOOT4] and there's no + room for one unless you work at a zoo. Self-reflection is a useful + tool you should pull out every now and then and as you can + probably tell, most people don't utilize it. + + 4. Software is hard, relationships are easy + + > If you don't build your dream, someone will hire you to help + > build theirs. + > — Tony Gaskin + + I reflect upon this quote often as I help people build their + dreams (startups) while also building my own[9]. I do believe + there's been a sea change in the industry around employee + happiness and retention. Have a look at job postings and you will + see work satisfaction and happiness as a perk. + + No one wants to work in a hostile environment and after a while, + people realize they don't have to put up with bullshit and they + quit (or are fired before they get the chance, lol). To echo the + tone of Gaskin's quote but modified for business leadership: + + > In order to build your dream, hire the best people and treat + > them like family. + + Assuming you have a great family or a close cadre of friends you + regard as family, would you treat them like the aforementioned + leaders have? Probably not. It's really not that difficult to be a + decent person. + + One of my closest friends is in a coding bootcamp and shares his + works in progress with me and another close friend on a regular + basis. I'm the most technical of us but what sense would it make + for me to downplay his efforts? What would I gain from that? It's + my responsibility to assist in his professional development + because I have the means to and I consider him family. + + A decade is a long time and software and startups come and go. + Even people do. Memories, do not (I mean, aside from + cognitive disorders). + + You remember the developer that treated me like shit during my + apprenticeship? His name came up in an interview I had two years + ago via my interviewer, half a decade later! Therefore, it is + *imperitive* that you treat people how you would like to be + treated, your reputation could precede you whether it's positive + or not. + + No matter what life-changing product you embark on or assist with + creating, you will get there a helluva lot faster surrounded by + people who respect you and vice-versa. If you've forgotten about + the Golden Rule, here's a handy refresher[10]. 🕸 + +References + + [FOOT1] My first domain name was `pw-software.com` (it now redirects + to `webb.page`). Back in the early 2010s, I blogged about + design and redesigned my site at least three times a year. + It was the *hottest* of messes. Back then I used Google and + regularly searched for "PW Software" to check my search + ranking. For a while, a company called "P+W Software" was the + first result. The constant linking of my website to Facebook + and deviantART improved SEO so much that I soon took the + number one spot. P+W Software was later acquired[11] by + another company. When ICANN released the `.page` TLD I was + absolutely *required* to obtain what's probably the nicest + domain on the planet and make it my new default home on + the Internet. + + [FOOT2] All but two startups I've worked for no longer exist. The + first one was acquired but I was seasonal help and thus was + too far gone to delight in their success. The second one + seems like it's not doing too well behind the scenes. + + [FOOT3] A word I hate more than almost anything (the taste of + asparagus will be difficult to unseat) is "impossible" and to + hear professionals in the web/tech space use this word so + casually is *frustrating*. We literally have supercomputers + in our pockets to share *memes* but it's "impossible" to make + text with a drop shadow expand across the screen before + flipping into an explosion of color with emoji rain. + *Impossible is not a word, it's an excuse.* + + [FOOT4] I really wanted to underscore how much of a jackass I was + prior to that post being published but was advised against it + by leadership. This most likely had something to do with + editorial voice of the company but few words exist to + exemplify negative behavior with such conciseness. + + [1] <https://www.deviantart.com/nokadota/art/2nd-Vector-72286668> + [2] <https://www.deviantart.com/nokadota/art/Above-The-Clouds-71695497> + [3] <https://www.deviantart.com/nokadota/gallery> + [4] <https://thoughtbot.com> + [5] <https://chad.is> + [6] <https://2016.dsgn.io/thoughts/post/the-importance-of-process> + [7] <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joystiq> + [8] <https://www.splcenter.org> + [9] <https://socii.network> + [10] <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Rule> + [11] <https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/press-release/consumer-health-technologies-inc-acquires-pw-software> + [IMG1] <https://🔥.pixels.wtf/blog/image/2019/a-decade-in-tech-a.png> |