|
i know its been a while for many of you, but what are some things you wished you learned/worked on when you started a job?
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 16:08
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 7, 2024 09:36 |
|
|
i think there was a similar thread to this a while back? i cant find it though V_V
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 16:09
|
|
|
show them your forums posts
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 16:12
|
|
|
moreso than things its attitudes when i was starting out, i had to work with typical IT/programmer knowitalls and i absolutely hate this attitude, so i try to not have that when working with junior folk be sympathetic towards gaps in knowledge remove the words "just", "simply", "only" or any other sort of diminutive about computer crap, computers are bullshit reinforce that many things can be figured out by reading code or errors slowly and putting them in your own mental model reinforce that things will break and it's ok to be wrong or in a failure state, because things CAN be fixed be pragmatic rather than dogmatic most of the time (i think being dogmatic about source control/git workflows is good, to an extent)
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 17:42
|
|
|
don't tell them or show them how to do things. take the time to sit them down and have THEM go through the process as you guide and explain. this is especially useful if it's a real world situation and not some abstract practice emphasize that it's not only ok for them not to know everything, it's expected that they won't know jack poo poo eventually they're going to have enough confidence to take a stab at something of their own volition without asking for backup first. it's also likely that they're going to gently caress something up when this happens. it's critical that you don't scold them when this happens and instead use it as yet another learning opportunity. if anything you should encourage them for taking initiative when this happens so they don't retreat and become terrified of doing anything without a month of meetings first. this is of course assuming they didn't do something colossally stupid like cowboy code in prod without an extremely good reason to do so
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 17:49
|
|
|
here's the coffee machine, here's how to make coffee, and most importantly here are the condititions under which it is their responsibility to make more coffee
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 17:56
|
|
|
we have a new guy on the team fresh out of college, and he was giving super detailed updates on when he'd be stepping away from his computer for things like rebooting or just a quick break (we're fully remote). i messaged him on the side and said something along the lines of "hey you don't gotta do that if it's short enough that nobody will realize you're gone." poor kid doesn't know how to slack off, what do they even teach in college these days???
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:01
|
|
|
where the bodies are buried
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:03
|
|
|
^ yeah be sure to let them know what happens if they dont work out
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:08
|
|
|
Shaggar posted:^ yeah be sure to let them know what happens if they dont work out well, sitting _is_ deadly
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:10
|
|
|
HamAdams posted:we have a new guy on the team fresh out of college, and he was giving super detailed updates on when he'd be stepping away from his computer for things like rebooting or just a quick break (we're fully remote). i messaged him on the side and said something along the lines of "hey you don't gotta do that if it's short enough that nobody will realize you're gone." poor kid doesn't know how to slack off, what do they even teach in college these days??? everyone's like that when they start. all nervous but still kinda excited that they're working with computers and technology and have a real job give 'em a couple months and it'll all disappear
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:13
|
|
|
Shaggar posted:show them your forums posts i showed her yours and now shes a huge fan of linux
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:13
|
|
|
HamAdams posted:we have a new guy on the team fresh out of college, and he was giving super detailed updates on when he'd be stepping away from his computer for things like rebooting or just a quick break (we're fully remote). i messaged him on the side and said something along the lines of "hey you don't gotta do that if it's short enough that nobody will realize you're gone." poor kid doesn't know how to slack off, what do they even teach in college these days??? this also happens when people are scarred by micromanagers or aren't sure how teams statuses are patrolled at your job.
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:15
|
|
|
Share Bear posted:moreso than things its attitudes this is good advice
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:18
|
|
|
oh and teach them how to ask questions about things like: 1. state what you're trying to accomplish, and how that is supposed to work, and why (in their mental model) 2. state what your setup is for attempting to accomplish this (tools/resources being used) 3. show what you've attempted, with logs if possible from the stuff in #2 while it's fine to field more specific shorter questions, usually there's the aspect of people having to figure out what you really want from details . saying that up front is better for a technical audience, imo. PIZZA.BAT posted:don't tell them or show them how to do things. take the time to sit them down and have THEM go through the process as you guide and explain. this is especially useful if it's a real world situation and not some abstract practice basically this, its good
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:25
|
|
|
teach them rubber ducking, because that poo poo works like magic
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:30
|
|
|
mentoring which void works best for screaming into as well flippantly discussing opsec
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:43
|
|
|
rotor posted:here's the coffee machine, here's how to make coffee, and most importantly here are the condititions under which it is their responsibility to make more coffee at motorola i worked my first year on nights, and a half hour before i clocked out (so around 6:30a) i would brew up two fresh Bunns full of beans. in hindsight, they did not deserve me
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:48
|
|
|
teach them that the computer is evil and the gun is good because it shoots death, and purifies the earth of the filth of computers
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:55
|
|
|
Jonny 290 posted:at motorola i worked my first year on nights, and a half hour before i clocked out (so around 6:30a) i would brew up two fresh Bunns full of beans. they absolutely did not
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:56
|
|
|
show them the differences between what works generally wherever you go and what has to be done a certain way because COMPANY demands it to be that way. tell them that working 60 hours a week and weekends and never taking PTO is VERY UNHEALTHY. "enterprise" level code is bullshit and it's ok for your code to look like it's straight out of your comp sci 100 level class because it's readable and maintainable. (code like the next person working on it has a gun and knows where you live) pushing back on something you feel is wrong is ok as long as you're communicating your issue with it professionally. it's not ok to be the dev that just blindly codes whatever is assigned. show them the bigger picture because it will save them from making bad code design decisions. never be afraid to ask questions. it's not a sign of weakness. it's a sign that you actually care. show them how to write USEFUL unit tests. if your test library makes it hard to impossible to actually test scenarios, find something else. Not everyone is into books, but this is the only one I'd ever recommend to anyone new or veteran (The Pragmatic Programmer): https://pragprog.com/titles/tpp20/the-pragmatic-programmer-20th-anniversary-edition/ rotor posted:teach them rubber ducking, because that poo poo works like magic 100% although most of the time this occurs when trying to explain why something isn't working to a coworker instead of a plastic duck. Share Bear posted:be pragmatic rather than dogmatic most of the time (i think being dogmatic about source control/git workflows is good, to an extent) this is huge but is a process.
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 18:59
|
|
|
poemdexter posted:
this is the whole point of the technique, use an inanimate object for your socratic dialogs so you dont have to bother someone else with it
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 19:01
|
|
|
one last thing because i remember the anxiety of my first few months on the job... you don't have to understand every line of the entire codebase to make changes. also for mentors, wait until the mentee feels just a tad bit comfortable before dumping all your cool .bash_profile aliases, secret scripts, hotkey setups, and IDE hacks on a new person. it's hard to tell what's normal work machine setup and what's bespoke artisanal farm to table grass-fed customization when you start out and can be completely overwhelming.
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 19:06
|
|
|
also don't be afraid to toss people into the deep end from time to time. it not only forces them to swim and therefore build trust in their own capabilities, it also demonstrates that you too have trust in them which is empowering* *do not do this if you're one of those people who do not understand what effective leadership is and will view this as an opportunity to nitpick them when they're feeling proud of an accomplishment
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 19:27
|
|
|
my favorite is telling new people that nothing serious will be expected of them for at least six months and then kicking them square in the back about a month to two months in 'hey $newbie, remember when i said we wouldn't be throwing you into the deep end for at least six months? so something came up yesterday and-' 
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 19:29
|
|
|
tell them that they can have a delicious cookie, but only if they can successfully exit vim without googling it
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 19:42
|
|
|
HamAdams posted:we have a new guy on the team fresh out of college, and he was giving super detailed updates on when he'd be stepping away from his computer for things like rebooting or just a quick break (we're fully remote). i messaged him on the side and said something along the lines of "hey you don't gotta do that if it's short enough that nobody will realize you're gone." poor kid doesn't know how to slack off, what do they even teach in college these days??? kids grow up having to ask permission to use the toilet, being graded on everything, and generally having it impressed upon them that the world is full of rigid disciplinarians who will punish them for any bit of trivial bullshit. it takes a while to get that crap out of your head "this isn't school, nobody is going to flunk you or give you detention because you have to go to the bathroom"
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 20:21
|
|
|
The_Franz posted:kids grow up having to ask permission to use the toilet, being graded on everything, and generally having it impressed upon them that the world is full of rigid disciplinarians who will punish them for any bit of trivial bullshit. it takes a while to get that crap out of your head pretty sure everyone figures this out in college though, if they somehow haven't clued into this in high school
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 20:24
|
|
|
new guy i've mentored on and off on my team does weird chat things that are too petty for me to complain about, nevermind even ask him to stop doing. i almost wonder if he's trolling me but that's just  af of me to think so i've learned to ignore it.
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 20:26
|
|
|
introduce them around as the FNG explain to them how things really work. if they’re just out of college, they don’t know poo poo. tell them you expect them to be useless for a few months, and they should become familiar with the process before trying to make a change. tell them *why* you do some things. like, we’ve got quarterly releases so we have to get the frobulator unit locked down before testing components that depend on it. don’t depress them with all the things that are wrong and dumb at this company, in particular executive decisions far above them. they’ll have plenty of time for that. start small and work up.
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 20:41
|
|
|
Cold on a Cob posted:new guy i've mentored on and off on my team does weird chat things that are too petty for me to complain about, nevermind even ask him to stop doing. i almost wonder if he's trolling me but that's just what are theses weird chat things do they put an x after serious messages
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 22:09
|
|
|
Cold on a Cob posted:new guy i've mentored on and off on my team does weird chat things that are too petty for me to complain about, nevermind even ask him to stop doing. i almost wonder if he's trolling me but that's just details, im fascinated by weird posters
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 22:14
|
|
|
good advice posted itt  i showed them our software, and gave them a chunk of what i am working on for their first assignment. i told them to come to me if they had any questions or pboelms
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 22:55
|
|
|
lol who did you piss off
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 22:57
|
|
|
tactfully but firmly make sure they know that indents are tabs not spaces, and that allman brace style is the only format that is acceptable
|
|
#
?
Mar 28, 2023 23:30
|
|
|
Jonny 290 posted:details, im fascinated by weird posters one thing he does is say “thanks” and then like 20 seconds later will 👍 the message I sent that he thanked me for in the first place. it’s just long enough for me to have tabbed out of the chat window so his emoji triggers a notification like nothing egregious but little things that kinda bug me. better than the other dev we had that sent me gifs every other message, thankfully she got poached for another project
|
|
#
?
Mar 29, 2023 00:49
|
|
|
AnimeIsTrash posted:good advice posted itt ask them if they have stairs in their house
|
|
#
?
Mar 29, 2023 00:52
|
|
|
HamAdams posted:we have a new guy on the team fresh out of college, and he was giving super detailed updates on when he'd be stepping away from his computer for things like rebooting or just a quick break (we're fully remote). i messaged him on the side and said something along the lines of "hey you don't gotta do that if it's short enough that nobody will realize you're gone." poor kid doesn't know how to slack off, what do they even teach in college these days??? I’ve been mentoring some new devs and one asked me on her first or second day when our breaks were Whenever, lol
|
|
#
?
Mar 29, 2023 01:23
|
|
|
there was a social channel at my last company where the tryhards were into things like posting "AFK 11-13 minutes, child bleeding, dont think its fatal tho"
|
|
#
?
Mar 29, 2023 03:08
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 7, 2024 09:36 |
|
|
lol
|
|
#
?
Mar 29, 2023 03:39
|
|