0:00:16.000,0:00:17.650 JESSIE LINK: So hello everyone. 0:00:17.650,0:00:19.689 I hope you're having a fantastic RailsConf. 0:00:19.689,0:00:22.310 Welcome to day four. My name's Jessie Link 0:00:22.310,0:00:23.349 and I'll be talking to you today 0:00:23.349,0:00:25.960 about how to be a boss without the B-S. 0:00:25.960,0:00:27.279 When you take the B-S out of boss, 0:00:27.279,0:00:28.960 you're left with the OS, which I like to think 0:00:28.960,0:00:31.149 to think stands for outstanding sauce, 0:00:31.149,0:00:32.680 which this dog is clearly fully of, 0:00:32.680,0:00:35.440 and hopefully you will be full of as well. 0:00:35.440,0:00:36.410 So let's get right into it. What are the 0:00:36.410,0:00:37.360 things we're gonna cover today? 0:00:37.360,0:00:38.470 We're basically gonna go 0:00:38.470,0:00:40.450 over the five W's. 0:00:40.450,0:00:41.920 Why you should consider management, 0:00:41.920,0:00:46.109 moving into that track. Who makes a good boss. 0:00:46.109,0:00:48.190 The skills you need to cultivate to be an 0:00:48.190,0:00:51.940 effective manager and boss and leader of men.[br]When 0:00:51.940,0:00:53.589 and how to make that jump into the management 0:00:53.589,0:00:56.289 track. And then finally, where you can find[br]some 0:00:56.289,0:00:57.570 resources. 0:00:57.570,0:00:58.499 And when I do a talk like this I 0:00:58.499,0:01:00.390 also like to cover the things that this talk 0:01:00.390,0:01:02.890 is explicitly not about. The abstract only[br]gave us 0:01:02.890,0:01:04.489 a very short amount of characters, so I want 0:01:04.489,0:01:05.710 to make sure that this is the talk you 0:01:05.710,0:01:07.950 actually want to be in. This is explicitly[br]not 0:01:07.950,0:01:10.060 about how to found a startup or how to 0:01:10.060,0:01:12.050 get VC financing. There are other folks here[br]who 0:01:12.050,0:01:13.940 can help you with that. I'm sure they'll be 0:01:13.940,0:01:15.159 happy to talk with you. I won't really be 0:01:15.159,0:01:16.810 covering that topic. 0:01:16.810,0:01:18.460 This is also not how to make your employees 0:01:18.460,0:01:22.100 obey you. We will only be covering light-side[br]Jedi 0:01:22.100,0:01:25.250 mind tricks. There are no shortcuts or tricks[br]that 0:01:25.250,0:01:26.670 are gonna, I can tell you to make your 0:01:26.670,0:01:28.890 employees obey you. You can only work on the 0:01:28.890,0:01:30.740 skills that we talk about today and try to 0:01:30.740,0:01:33.030 cultivate your leadership skills that way. 0:01:33.030,0:01:35.619 So, first, a little bit about me. Why am 0:01:35.619,0:01:37.140 I qualified to talk to you about being a 0:01:37.140,0:01:40.170 boss? My company made me get a head shot 0:01:40.170,0:01:42.399 for our corporate website. This is the head[br]shot 0:01:42.399,0:01:44.500 here. My mother loves this picture because[br]she thinks 0:01:44.500,0:01:46.850 I look like a fancy professional lady. I like 0:01:46.850,0:01:48.380 this head shot because she doesn't know I'm[br]wearing 0:01:48.380,0:01:53.409 shorts and flip-flops. So take that mom. 0:01:53.409,0:01:56.840 So, all business up top. Party on the bottom. 0:01:56.840,0:02:00.140 Don't worry. So, I've actually served in a[br]variety 0:02:00.140,0:02:02.369 of leadership roles. I actually served in[br]the U.S. 0:02:02.369,0:02:04.189 Air force for six years. I was a captain, 0:02:04.189,0:02:05.509 which is an O-3 for those of you who 0:02:05.509,0:02:08.310 know that rank. When I came out, I transitioned 0:02:08.310,0:02:10.660 into civilian software development world and[br]have been doing 0:02:10.660,0:02:12.370 that since about the year 2000. I also have 0:02:12.370,0:02:14.970 a computer science background. And I've been[br]in civilian 0:02:14.970,0:02:16.580 leadership since about 2010. 0:02:16.580,0:02:19.190 Over the course of that time, I've studied[br]leadership 0:02:19.190,0:02:21.950 principles for over eighteen years now. The[br]military is 0:02:21.950,0:02:23.610 very big on training you on that sort of 0:02:23.610,0:02:26.420 stuff, so I've tried to keep up that practice. 0:02:26.420,0:02:28.470 I'm currently the director of engineering[br]at a company 0:02:28.470,0:02:31.200 called Looking Glass Ciber Solutions. We're[br]a ciber security 0:02:31.200,0:02:33.590 company based out of Baltimore. Look us up.[br]We're 0:02:33.590,0:02:34.310 pretty great. 0:02:34.310,0:02:35.640 And I have some letters after my name there. 0:02:35.640,0:02:37.800 So I'm a certified SCRUM master and I also 0:02:37.800,0:02:41.330 have a project management professional certification.[br]Which sounds more 0:02:41.330,0:02:44.890 impressive than it really is. 0:02:44.890,0:02:47.890 So, why make the leap? Why be a boss? 0:02:47.890,0:02:51.430 Don't worry, it's not all TPS reports. I think 0:02:51.430,0:02:53.340 a lot of people have a misconception about[br]what 0:02:53.340,0:02:55.360 it means to move into a formal management[br]role. 0:02:55.360,0:02:58.260 They think it's all paperwork. It's all drudgery.[br]It's 0:02:58.260,0:03:01.010 about being the enemy. It's about, you know,[br]being, 0:03:01.010,0:03:02.990 can you come in on Saturday? 0:03:02.990,0:03:06.510 But management is about more than that. So[br]let's 0:03:06.510,0:03:08.150 talk about why you might want to make that 0:03:08.150,0:03:12.120 leap. Because, make no mistake, this is not[br]a 0:03:12.120,0:03:15.030 job change. This is a career change. So let's 0:03:15.030,0:03:18.810 say you're a founder. You started a business.[br]Fantastic. 0:03:18.810,0:03:20.670 So we know you can start a business. It's 0:03:20.670,0:03:23.340 in the title. But can you grow your business? 0:03:23.340,0:03:26.490 Can you finish? Can you exit startup mode. 0:03:26.490,0:03:27.910 To start, all you need is a great idea 0:03:27.910,0:03:30.950 and some coding ability. To sustain a business,[br]you 0:03:30.950,0:03:32.910 need to have management skills. You need to[br]know 0:03:32.910,0:03:35.340 how to sustain your business and lead your[br]people 0:03:35.340,0:03:37.500 and take your company to the next level of 0:03:37.500,0:03:42.670 great success. Even if you haven't started[br]a startup, 0:03:42.670,0:03:43.830 you may decide you've hit your ceiling in[br]the 0:03:43.830,0:03:45.870 technical track. You may not be interested[br]in moving 0:03:45.870,0:03:48.740 into a Chief Architect role. You may be bored, 0:03:48.740,0:03:51.120 frankly. Maybe the challenges you're taking[br]on aren't that 0:03:51.120,0:03:55.090 exciting anymore. That's OK, because moving[br]into the management 0:03:55.090,0:03:58.260 track means taking on new and exciting challenges. 0:03:58.260,0:04:00.840 Being a boss is very, very, very challenging.[br]Now, 0:04:00.840,0:04:02.780 I know what you might be thinking. How hard 0:04:02.780,0:04:05.220 can this possibly be? My boss is an idiot. 0:04:05.220,0:04:07.680 He doesn't know what he's talking about. I[br]don't 0:04:07.680,0:04:09.600 know what she does all day. So let me 0:04:09.600,0:04:10.870 amend my statement. 0:04:10.870,0:04:13.230 Being a bad boss is very, very easy. Being 0:04:13.230,0:04:18.750 a good boss is very hard. Most importantly,[br]when 0:04:18.750,0:04:20.399 you move into the management track, you get[br]to 0:04:20.399,0:04:23.070 be in the driver's seat. Now, again, if you're 0:04:23.070,0:04:26.389 that founder, that's your baby. You have a[br]vision 0:04:26.389,0:04:28.460 you want to drive towards with that company.[br]If 0:04:28.460,0:04:30.240 you don't want to take on management responsibility,[br]that's 0:04:30.240,0:04:32.469 OK. But what that means is you're seeding[br]control 0:04:32.469,0:04:33.840 to someone else who is gonna come in and 0:04:33.840,0:04:35.449 run your business for you. And you might not 0:04:35.449,0:04:37.330 like the direction they take you in. 0:04:37.330,0:04:38.800 So if you want to make and maintain control 0:04:38.800,0:04:41.000 over that thing that you started, take it[br]to 0:04:41.000,0:04:43.120 the finish line, you need to cultivate those[br]management 0:04:43.120,0:04:45.150 skills. Same thing if you're a senior developer.[br]You 0:04:45.150,0:04:47.030 may find yourself saying, you know, I don't[br]really 0:04:47.030,0:04:48.530 care for the decisions they're making. I think[br]I 0:04:48.530,0:04:52.080 can do better. Then go do better. Prove it. 0:04:52.080,0:04:55.490 To me, the fifth bullet is the most important 0:04:55.490,0:04:58.150 one. It's why I moved into the management[br]track 0:04:58.150,0:04:59.150 and it's why I stay in it and it's 0:04:59.150,0:05:01.300 why I feel fulfilled every day when I come 0:05:01.300,0:05:04.330 to work. When you move into a formal management 0:05:04.330,0:05:05.879 role, you get to have an impact on the 0:05:05.879,0:05:07.830 career of your employees. You really get to[br]help 0:05:07.830,0:05:09.900 mold and make them into the people they're[br]gonna 0:05:09.900,0:05:11.879 be tomorrow. And that is tremendously rewarding.[br]There is 0:05:11.879,0:05:15.189 nothing better than seeing a junior developer[br]blossom into 0:05:15.189,0:05:18.520 the big, beautiful senior engineer butterflies[br]they were always 0:05:18.520,0:05:20.389 meant to be. And you're a big part about 0:05:20.389,0:05:22.280 taking them on that journey. 0:05:22.280,0:05:25.090 Finally, you get to see the business from[br]a 0:05:25.090,0:05:27.150 new perspective. Again, part of your boredom[br]might be 0:05:27.150,0:05:30.050 only sort of staying in this very narrow engineering 0:05:30.050,0:05:31.830 track. As you move into a management role,[br]you 0:05:31.830,0:05:33.389 get a chance to touch other parts of the 0:05:33.389,0:05:35.789 business. You get to see how marketing works,[br]how 0:05:35.789,0:05:38.310 sales work, financing. How you deal with customers.[br]What 0:05:38.310,0:05:40.270 happens at the C-Suite level. So you get to 0:05:40.270,0:05:41.900 see how the sausage is made from a new 0:05:41.900,0:05:47.219 perspective. And that can be tremendously[br]rewarding as well. 0:05:47.219,0:05:48.819 So as a boss, you take on a bunch 0:05:48.819,0:05:51.669 of new responsibilities other than just writing[br]code and 0:05:51.669,0:05:55.680 developing systems. You're responsible for[br]people, schedule, budget, and 0:05:55.680,0:06:00.389 scope. So who makes a good boss? What are 0:06:00.389,0:06:03.449 the characteristics of a person who can move[br]into 0:06:03.449,0:06:05.550 this track and have success? 0:06:05.550,0:06:09.779 Number one, you should like people. You're[br]gonna have 0:06:09.779,0:06:11.169 to deal with people in your job. Now this 0:06:11.169,0:06:12.969 does not mean you need to be an extrovert. 0:06:12.969,0:06:15.379 You can be an introvert and succeed at being 0:06:15.379,0:06:18.060 a boss. It just means you can't be anti-social. 0:06:18.060,0:06:21.860 If you hate people, that's OK. Keep doing[br]your 0:06:21.860,0:06:24.319 thing. Maybe management isn't for you. You[br]should really 0:06:24.319,0:06:26.319 care about the people you're gonna lead. You[br]should 0:06:26.319,0:06:28.169 care about the people you're gonna interact[br]with. You 0:06:28.169,0:06:30.020 have to care about your customers. So that's[br]sort 0:06:30.020,0:06:32.930 of a key component. 0:06:32.930,0:06:35.009 You can't fear conflict. There are people[br]out there 0:06:35.009,0:06:37.240 who are conflict averse. That's OK. The management[br]track 0:06:37.240,0:06:39.279 probably isn't for you. If you are not willing 0:06:39.279,0:06:41.599 to confront conflict head on, it will overwhelm[br]you 0:06:41.599,0:06:43.960 and your team. So you have to be ready 0:06:43.960,0:06:49.229 to get a little spicy sometimes. Get a little 0:06:49.229,0:06:50.039 scrappy. 0:06:50.039,0:06:53.110 Adaptability is probably one of the most important[br]traits. 0:06:53.110,0:06:54.930 I don't think I've ever had a project go 0:06:54.930,0:06:57.319 smoothly an according to plan. I think many[br]of 0:06:57.319,0:06:58.719 you have probably never worked on a project[br]that's 0:06:58.719,0:07:00.900 gone a hundred percent perfect and according[br]to plan. 0:07:00.900,0:07:02.330 And if you can't be adaptable when the things 0:07:02.330,0:07:04.099 go wrong, you're really gonna struggle and[br]you're really 0:07:04.099,0:07:07.409 gonna drag your team down. 0:07:07.409,0:07:10.409 You have to be confident. Confidence is contagious.[br]So 0:07:10.409,0:07:12.650 is lack of confidence. If you don't believe[br]in 0:07:12.650,0:07:13.819 what you're doing, if you don't believe in[br]the 0:07:13.819,0:07:15.370 game plan you have, your people are gonna[br]sense 0:07:15.370,0:07:17.199 that and they're not gonna believe in what[br]they're 0:07:17.199,0:07:21.319 doing. You also have to have the confidence[br]to, 0:07:21.319,0:07:24.050 once you set that game plan, move forward[br]with 0:07:24.050,0:07:25.400 it. 0:07:25.400,0:07:27.210 Having said that, you have to be humble. There 0:07:27.210,0:07:29.629 is nothing worse than a boss who knows it 0:07:29.629,0:07:31.020 all. Maybe some of you have worked for that 0:07:31.020,0:07:33.979 kind of person. You can't tell them anything.[br]Their 0:07:33.979,0:07:37.499 opinion's always right. There's nothing you[br]can, there's nothing 0:07:37.499,0:07:39.559 you can teach them. They're the boss. They're,[br]they're 0:07:39.559,0:07:41.680 so much better than you. You have to have 0:07:41.680,0:07:43.919 a sense of humility. You have to understand[br]that 0:07:43.919,0:07:45.759 you're not a perfect person and that you may 0:07:45.759,0:07:48.259 make mistakes. And you have to have the humility 0:07:48.259,0:07:49.680 to listen to your team and let them tell 0:07:49.680,0:07:53.629 you when you're wrong. 0:07:53.629,0:07:56.110 You have to be empathetic. If you can't understand 0:07:56.110,0:07:58.629 people, you can't lead them. If you cannot[br]truly 0:07:58.629,0:08:01.039 get where people are coming from, there's[br]no way 0:08:01.039,0:08:02.689 you're going to be able to communicate effectively[br]or 0:08:02.689,0:08:06.559 lead them. Leadership is about understanding[br]peoples' motivations. Their 0:08:06.559,0:08:09.830 desires, their drives. And then letting them[br]move forward 0:08:09.830,0:08:12.999 and embrace those things in a productive way. 0:08:12.999,0:08:16.150 Lastly, you have to have integrity. As you[br]move 0:08:16.150,0:08:17.800 into the manager track, you're going to be[br]imbued 0:08:17.800,0:08:21.069 with certain powers. Certain responsibilities.[br]With great power comes 0:08:21.069,0:08:23.849 great responsibility. You have to be trustworthy[br]to do 0:08:23.849,0:08:25.620 that right thing. You're going to be trusted[br]with 0:08:25.620,0:08:29.990 budget. With firing decisions. Hiring decisions.[br]Promotion decisions. If 0:08:29.990,0:08:32.020 you are not an honest person, your team's[br]really 0:08:32.020,0:08:38.559 gonna suffer and your business may suffer. 0:08:38.559,0:08:40.549 So up til now, you've been cultivating your[br]technical 0:08:40.549,0:08:43.240 skills. You're at RailsConf, probably, to[br]continue to grow 0:08:43.240,0:08:46.120 those technical skills. And that's fantastic.[br]But, again, this 0:08:46.120,0:08:49.120 is a career change. A career change requires[br]a 0:08:49.120,0:08:50.660 whole new different set of skills that you[br]need 0:08:50.660,0:08:55.780 to start cultivating alongside those technical[br]skills. 0:08:55.780,0:08:59.220 First and foremost is the communication skill.[br]So communication 0:08:59.220,0:09:01.690 encompasses a lot of different things. It's[br]verbal. It's 0:09:01.690,0:09:04.220 being able to speak to people. It's also non-verbal. 0:09:04.220,0:09:05.770 Seventy percent of the communication we have[br]with each 0:09:05.770,0:09:09.520 other is actually non-verbal. So understanding[br]how non-verbal works, 0:09:09.520,0:09:11.470 and how you leverage that when you're dealing[br]with 0:09:11.470,0:09:13.720 someone who's remote, dealing with someone[br]on a web 0:09:13.720,0:09:16.090 cam, not in person. Understanding how that[br]works is 0:09:16.090,0:09:19.350 very important. Understanding how to write.[br]How to articulate 0:09:19.350,0:09:21.850 your thoughts on the written paper and in[br]email. 0:09:21.850,0:09:23.750 We're in the industry right now where a lot 0:09:23.750,0:09:30.750 of communication happens asynchronously. Pull[br]requests. Formal emails. Memos. 0:09:30.890,0:09:33.080 This is the most important ability you must[br]have. 0:09:33.080,0:09:34.790 You cannot execute the other skills if you[br]do 0:09:34.790,0:09:36.640 not have this one. You will see the theme 0:09:36.640,0:09:43.640 of communication echo throughout my following[br]slides. Communication knows, 0:09:44.470,0:09:46.460 it means, knowing how to tune your message[br]to 0:09:46.460,0:09:48.700 your audience. It's not just what you say,[br]it's 0:09:48.700,0:09:52.030 how you say it. Understand how to tune your 0:09:52.030,0:09:54.400 message when you're communicating downwards.[br]When you're talking to 0:09:54.400,0:09:56.770 your employees. How do you communicate laterally[br]when you're 0:09:56.770,0:09:59.180 dealing with peers of the company? Other managers?[br]How 0:09:59.180,0:10:04.010 do you communicate upward with the C-Suite[br]executives? Do 0:10:04.010,0:10:05.510 you know how to manage upwards? How do you 0:10:05.510,0:10:07.570 communicate with customers? How do you deal[br]with the 0:10:07.570,0:10:09.460 other business units? These are all things[br]you really 0:10:09.460,0:10:10.640 need to understand. 0:10:10.640,0:10:13.960 You I think as, as people who attend something 0:10:13.960,0:10:16.320 like RailsConf, we pride ourselves on being[br]polyglots. We 0:10:16.320,0:10:18.890 speak many languages. We're not just Ruby[br]developers. We 0:10:18.890,0:10:22.250 speak JavaScript. We do different frameworks[br]like Ember. We 0:10:22.250,0:10:24.850 do CSS, html, Java, the list goes on and 0:10:24.850,0:10:28.020 on and on. The same principle actually applies[br]when 0:10:28.020,0:10:30.150 you begin communicating at the management[br]level. 0:10:30.150,0:10:32.640 When we're talking about communication, as[br]you move into 0:10:32.640,0:10:36.040 the management track, I'm talking about domain[br]specific languages. 0:10:36.040,0:10:39.930 So, the terms that a salesman uses may be 0:10:39.930,0:10:42.520 very different than the term an engineer uses.[br]Same 0:10:42.520,0:10:46.400 thing with marketing. Same thing with your[br]customers. Understanding 0:10:46.400,0:10:49.400 how to communicate with those different domain[br]specific languages, 0:10:49.400,0:10:51.640 how to mold your message so that it speaks 0:10:51.640,0:10:53.450 to that person that you're talking to and[br]it 0:10:53.450,0:10:55.600 really resonates with them, is a really important[br]skill 0:10:55.600,0:10:56.940 to cultivate. 0:10:56.940,0:10:59.290 Now, communication is way too broad for me[br]to 0:10:59.290,0:11:02.500 cover in just one slide. I could probably[br]give 0:11:02.500,0:11:05.090 a talk just about this slide. So, I won't 0:11:05.090,0:11:07.060 be able to cover the whole, the whole span 0:11:07.060,0:11:08.890 of what it really means to communicate. I[br]will 0:11:08.890,0:11:10.530 start with a couple of key skills, though,[br]that 0:11:10.530,0:11:13.380 I think are the foundation to moving along[br]as 0:11:13.380,0:11:16.380 you improve your communication. And that's[br]the principle right 0:11:16.380,0:11:19.350 here, which is communication is a two-way[br]street. 0:11:19.350,0:11:21.120 So when you start learning how to communicate[br]and 0:11:21.120,0:11:23.420 you start analyzing your own communication[br]style, you should 0:11:23.420,0:11:25.450 really be thinking, am I an active listener?[br]Have 0:11:25.450,0:11:28.380 you ever had a conversation with someone,[br]and you 0:11:28.380,0:11:32.060 can tell they're not listening to what you're[br]saying? 0:11:32.060,0:11:33.860 They're listening because they're waiting[br]for the break in 0:11:33.860,0:11:37.820 the conversation when it's their turn to talk. 0:11:37.820,0:11:39.200 Don't be that person. That person is not an 0:11:39.200,0:11:40.920 active listener. They don't really care what[br]you're saying. 0:11:40.920,0:11:43.300 They just want their turn to put their opinion 0:11:43.300,0:11:45.080 out in the world. Part of being an active 0:11:45.080,0:11:48.760 listener and dealing with folks is really[br]being respectful 0:11:48.760,0:11:50.190 to their opinion. You don't have to agree[br]with 0:11:50.190,0:11:52.690 them. But, again, it goes back to that empathy 0:11:52.690,0:11:55.780 trait. Understand where they're coming from.[br]Hear what they're 0:11:55.780,0:11:59.110 saying. And only then do you respond. It's[br]the 0:11:59.110,0:12:01.550 difference between being a reactive listener[br]and an active 0:12:01.550,0:12:04.390 listener. 0:12:04.390,0:12:08.600 Delegation. As you start to grow your team,[br]as 0:12:08.600,0:12:09.810 you start to get more and more folks, this 0:12:09.810,0:12:14.320 is a critical, critical skill. And this is[br]a 0:12:14.320,0:12:17.260 skill that I think many young managers struggle[br]with. 0:12:17.260,0:12:18.760 Your job is to make sure the team gets 0:12:18.760,0:12:20.550 the work done. Your job is not to do 0:12:20.550,0:12:22.840 the work yourself anymore. You're just one[br]person. You 0:12:22.840,0:12:24.600 may have twelve people working for you. You[br]cannot 0:12:24.600,0:12:29.560 outpace the output of your team. 0:12:29.560,0:12:30.980 When you learn to delegate, you have to set 0:12:30.980,0:12:33.570 direction - and again, communication, coming[br]back already in 0:12:33.570,0:12:35.490 the next slide. You have to communicate what[br]needs 0:12:35.490,0:12:36.740 to be done in a clear fashion. Are your 0:12:36.740,0:12:39.250 objectives clear? Does the person understand[br]what they need 0:12:39.250,0:12:42.260 to get done? And this is really hard, because 0:12:42.260,0:12:45.980 this requires trust. I think another misconception[br]people have 0:12:45.980,0:12:48.020 is, you know what, I get the term manager 0:12:48.020,0:12:50.160 in front of my name, and I have unlimited 0:12:50.160,0:12:52.540 power. Just like the emperor. I control the[br]world. 0:12:52.540,0:12:55.320 I am the queen of everything. 0:12:55.320,0:12:57.120 The most important thing to understand, as[br]you learn 0:12:57.120,0:12:59.310 to delegate, as you learn to be a manager, 0:12:59.310,0:13:01.370 is that you do not have control. Control is 0:13:01.370,0:13:03.970 a lie. You are responsible for the ultimate[br]success 0:13:03.970,0:13:05.530 of the project, but you can't do the work 0:13:05.530,0:13:09.220 on your own anymore. You don't have that control. 0:13:09.220,0:13:11.250 You cannot make success. You can only put[br]in 0:13:11.250,0:13:13.400 place the conditions to allow it to happen.[br]And 0:13:13.400,0:13:15.670 that's what delegation is really about, is[br]learning to 0:13:15.670,0:13:18.640 become zen about letting go a little. 0:13:18.640,0:13:21.000 Managers who cannot do this are often referred[br]to 0:13:21.000,0:13:23.100 as micro managers. You have probably worked[br]for some 0:13:23.100,0:13:26.050 of them. Don't be a micro manager. It's very 0:13:26.050,0:13:28.080 disruptive to the team. You will not be very 0:13:28.080,0:13:31.160 productive. 0:13:31.160,0:13:34.430 This is a reason many micro managers fail[br]to 0:13:34.430,0:13:37.970 lead their team successfully. Again, part[br]of losing control 0:13:37.970,0:13:40.710 is accepting that sometimes they're not gonna[br]get it 0:13:40.710,0:13:42.710 right. And that last bullet, to me, is very 0:13:42.710,0:13:45.290 important. You cannot fear failure. You have[br]to let 0:13:45.290,0:13:47.690 your employees fail on their own. I have learned 0:13:47.690,0:13:50.490 more from the one time that I have misplaced 0:13:50.490,0:13:52.620 a semi colon somewhere in my code than all 0:13:52.620,0:13:53.920 the hundreds of times I have put the semi 0:13:53.920,0:13:56.640 colon in the right place. Failure can be tremendously 0:13:56.640,0:13:59.060 valuable as a learning experience for your[br]people, so 0:13:59.060,0:14:00.570 you cannot be afraid to let them fail a 0:14:00.570,0:14:01.520 little bit on your own. 0:14:01.520,0:14:03.240 Now, again, you're gonna have to balance that[br]out. 0:14:03.240,0:14:05.200 If you're crashing in a fiery mess, there's[br]going 0:14:05.200,0:14:06.560 to be a time to go in and rescue 0:14:06.560,0:14:08.190 them. But you have to let them kind of 0:14:08.190,0:14:10.290 work it out. Get through those difficult spots[br]on 0:14:10.290,0:14:11.770 their own. And again, that's something a lot[br]of 0:14:11.770,0:14:15.390 folks really struggle with. 0:14:15.390,0:14:16.730 Another skill, when you move into management,[br]is the 0:14:16.730,0:14:19.260 skill of coaching. So the man in this slide 0:14:19.260,0:14:23.110 here is Vince Lombardi. He's one of the greats, 0:14:23.110,0:14:25.880 great minds in the history of football. I[br]should 0:14:25.880,0:14:28.010 say American football. I know we have some[br]international 0:14:28.010,0:14:29.870 folks here who are probably thinking, that[br]doesn't look 0:14:29.870,0:14:31.720 like a soccer play. 0:14:31.720,0:14:34.670 So, Vince Lombardi is a legend in the American 0:14:34.670,0:14:37.820 football industry. He is enshrined in Canton.[br]And he 0:14:37.820,0:14:40.730 is famous not only for his acumen at football, 0:14:40.730,0:14:42.480 that strategy as you can see on the board 0:14:42.480,0:14:44.410 behind him, but also his ability to lead and 0:14:44.410,0:14:47.300 inspire forty grown men who don't have to[br]say, 0:14:47.300,0:14:48.510 who don't have to do what he says to 0:14:48.510,0:14:50.450 do. If you get a chance to Google Vince 0:14:50.450,0:14:53.030 Lombardi quotes, he is a treasure trove of[br]wisdom 0:14:53.030,0:14:56.860 and insight on how to lead teams effectively. 0:14:56.860,0:15:00.990 So what is coaching? Coaching is about making[br]sure 0:15:00.990,0:15:03.680 your people continue to grow. Going back to[br]that 0:15:03.680,0:15:06.060 previous slide, why do we delegate? We delegate[br]because 0:15:06.060,0:15:09.180 it's our responsibility to grow the leaders[br]of tomorrow 0:15:09.180,0:15:11.180 and to continue to grow the junior devs into 0:15:11.180,0:15:15.450 the senior devs of tomorrow. I once interviewed[br]a 0:15:15.450,0:15:18.730 technical team lead, and I was asking him,[br]well, 0:15:18.730,0:15:20.550 tell me about how you manage your folks. I 0:15:20.550,0:15:22.010 see you have some people working for you.[br]How 0:15:22.010,0:15:23.550 do you delegate work out? 0:15:23.550,0:15:26.130 He said, well, you know, I give them, I 0:15:26.130,0:15:27.670 give them sort of the grunt work and, and 0:15:27.670,0:15:28.790 they get to run the metrics, and they turn 0:15:28.790,0:15:30.730 the results over to me, and then I go 0:15:30.730,0:15:33.030 do the rest of it. He got to do 0:15:33.030,0:15:35.050 all the fun stuff. His guys got all the 0:15:35.050,0:15:37.000 grunt work. Do you think the people on his 0:15:37.000,0:15:39.590 team ever grew out of their junior dev roles, 0:15:39.590,0:15:41.720 when all that he gave them was grunt work? 0:15:41.720,0:15:43.600 So you have to be willing to let your 0:15:43.600,0:15:45.450 people grow, even though it means taking a[br]back 0:15:45.450,0:15:49.280 seat sometimes. Instead, what you should be[br]focusing on 0:15:49.280,0:15:51.240 is inspiring and motivating the people underneath[br]you to 0:15:51.240,0:15:54.440 be the best that they can be. 0:15:54.440,0:15:56.840 Vince Limbardi once said, practice doesn't[br]make perfect. Only 0:15:56.840,0:16:01.200 perfect practice makes perfect. So, at some[br]point, again, 0:16:01.200,0:16:02.380 your folks are going to fail. They're going[br]to 0:16:02.380,0:16:04.530 do the wrong thing. Your job as a coach 0:16:04.530,0:16:06.740 is to correct that bad behavior, right. To[br]correct 0:16:06.740,0:16:08.120 the things they're doing wrong, to teach them[br]how 0:16:08.120,0:16:10.500 to do things better. And there's a real skill 0:16:10.500,0:16:13.450 and a real art in terms of communicating and 0:16:13.450,0:16:15.840 coaching folks so that they can receive that[br]constructive 0:16:15.840,0:16:17.630 criticism in a way that builds them up that 0:16:17.630,0:16:18.620 doesn't tear them down. 0:16:18.620,0:16:22.370 There is nothing worse than seeing someone[br]wilt under 0:16:22.370,0:16:25.120 unrelenting criticism from a boss. That is[br]the best 0:16:25.120,0:16:27.250 way to make sure someone quits, to make sure 0:16:27.250,0:16:29.350 they, the impostor syndrome never lets go[br]of their 0:16:29.350,0:16:31.570 little hearts, you know. So it's very important[br]that 0:16:31.570,0:16:34.530 you build them up, not tear them down. 0:16:34.530,0:16:36.370 Coaching is about having the confidence to[br]set a 0:16:36.370,0:16:38.430 game plan and then empower the team to execute 0:16:38.430,0:16:40.970 on it. So, again, empowering is a really important 0:16:40.970,0:16:42.360 word in that statement, and it goes back to 0:16:42.360,0:16:47.040 that delegation idea. Vince Limbardi was a[br]brilliant football 0:16:47.040,0:16:49.240 mind, but regardless of how brilliant he was[br]at 0:16:49.240,0:16:51.090 football, he did not run onto the field and 0:16:51.090,0:16:53.180 throw the ball himself. He didn't run onto[br]the 0:16:53.180,0:16:55.090 field and tackle the other player. I'm sure[br]he 0:16:55.090,0:16:57.980 wanted to sometimes. But coaching is really[br]about having 0:16:57.980,0:16:59.960 confidence in your game plan and empowering[br]the team 0:16:59.960,0:17:01.040 to execute on it. 0:17:01.040,0:17:02.980 Like I said, learning to trust can be very 0:17:02.980,0:17:04.819 hard, but it's a lot easier to trust and 0:17:04.819,0:17:07.169 delegate if you have faith in the game plan 0:17:07.169,0:17:08.990 you've put together. If you have a good coaching 0:17:08.990,0:17:11.319 regimen that ensures that your people have[br]learned to 0:17:11.319,0:17:12.819 do it the right way, then it's a lot 0:17:12.819,0:17:14.628 easier to let go and let them go do, 0:17:14.628,0:17:16.939 let them go win that championship. 0:17:16.939,0:17:19.539 This is a quote I like. It's from General 0:17:19.539,0:17:21.669 Dwight Eisenhower. And he said, "Leadership[br]is the art 0:17:21.669,0:17:23.539 of getting someone else to do something you[br]want 0:17:23.539,0:17:26.730 done because he wants to do it." 0:17:26.730,0:17:28.669 When you communicate, as you move into the[br]management 0:17:28.669,0:17:30.710 ranks, you're gonna be imbued with a lot of 0:17:30.710,0:17:34.980 formal responsibility. I like to call that[br]hard power. 0:17:34.980,0:17:37.299 Hard power is, do it because I say so. 0:17:37.299,0:17:41.049 I can fire you if I want. I do 0:17:41.049,0:17:43.940 not recommend you use a lot of hard power. 0:17:43.940,0:17:45.970 No one had more hard power than General Dwight 0:17:45.970,0:17:47.610 Eisenhower. He was a five star general. There[br]was 0:17:47.610,0:17:49.549 literally not another person in the military[br]who could 0:17:49.549,0:17:51.129 tell him what to do. 0:17:51.129,0:17:52.450 So I think the fact that he made this 0:17:52.450,0:17:55.470 quote here is very, very provocative. Because[br]he's not 0:17:55.470,0:17:58.019 talking about hard power. It's not saying,[br]just get 0:17:58.019,0:17:59.620 enough stars on your chest and you can make 0:17:59.620,0:18:00.769 them do what you want to do. I mean, 0:18:00.769,0:18:02.450 he could literally put people in jail if they 0:18:02.450,0:18:04.820 didn't follow his commands. What he's talking[br]about here 0:18:04.820,0:18:07.549 is actually the art of applying soft power. 0:18:07.549,0:18:10.690 Soft power is being able to communicate and[br]convince 0:18:10.690,0:18:13.009 folks to really buy into what you want to 0:18:13.009,0:18:14.320 do as a team, what you want to do 0:18:14.320,0:18:16.370 as a company, without the threat of the hard 0:18:16.370,0:18:18.590 power. Even if you have it. Just because you 0:18:18.590,0:18:20.399 have a stick doesn't mean you need to wield 0:18:20.399,0:18:20.960 it. 0:18:20.960,0:18:23.629 Understanding how to wield soft power is very,[br]very, 0:18:23.629,0:18:27.659 very important. Lazy bosses, bad bosses go[br]back to 0:18:27.659,0:18:29.080 the hard power stick because they have no[br]other 0:18:29.080,0:18:31.259 tools in their regimen. If you're really understanding[br]the 0:18:31.259,0:18:32.899 concept of soft power and how to apply that 0:18:32.899,0:18:35.919 is important. And, again, there is no idea[br]more 0:18:35.919,0:18:38.070 powerful than an idea that someone feels is[br]their 0:18:38.070,0:18:42.419 own. So help them, help them understand the[br]idea. 0:18:42.419,0:18:44.120 Help them understand what you want done. And[br]then 0:18:44.120,0:18:47.549 help them understand why they want to do it. 0:18:47.549,0:18:51.759 Courage. Another important skill. Is it a[br]skill? I 0:18:51.759,0:18:53.169 would argue it is. Because it's really about[br]knowing 0:18:53.169,0:18:54.509 how to stick to your guns but still get 0:18:54.509,0:18:59.200 stuff done. Again, with great power comes[br]great responsibility. 0:18:59.200,0:19:01.070 As you delegate out the work, the work might 0:19:01.070,0:19:03.080 not get done. But the buck still stops with 0:19:03.080,0:19:05.320 you. It's still your ultimate responsibility[br]when things don't 0:19:05.320,0:19:08.379 go right. Having the courage to own that failure 0:19:08.379,0:19:10.499 is really, really difficult. It takes a lot[br]of 0:19:10.499,0:19:11.580 guts, believe it or not, to say, you know 0:19:11.580,0:19:13.480 what? That's my bad. 0:19:13.480,0:19:15.549 A bad boss who does not understand this concept 0:19:15.549,0:19:17.799 will throw people under the bus. We didn't[br]get 0:19:17.799,0:19:20.129 it done because this other team failed to[br]give 0:19:20.129,0:19:23.340 me something I needed. Oh, well, this employee[br]isn't 0:19:23.340,0:19:24.919 doing a good job. He failed on it. I'll 0:19:24.919,0:19:27.129 be disciplining him later. Potentially firing[br]him. But it's 0:19:27.129,0:19:28.830 not my fault. 0:19:28.830,0:19:31.330 So having the courage to understand where[br]your responsibility 0:19:31.330,0:19:34.559 lies and how to embrace that is really important. 0:19:34.559,0:19:37.799 Saying no can be very, very difficult. Just[br]because 0:19:37.799,0:19:39.059 you have a little bit of hard power as 0:19:39.059,0:19:40.279 you move up in the rank doesn't mean you're 0:19:40.279,0:19:43.149 the only one with power, unless maybe you're[br]Emperor 0:19:43.149,0:19:44.340 Palpatine. But. 0:19:44.340,0:19:47.450 There will be other managers that have power.[br]There's 0:19:47.450,0:19:49.749 going to be people above you have more power. 0:19:49.749,0:19:51.490 Your boss is gonna come down and ask you 0:19:51.490,0:19:53.870 to do things you may not be comfortable with. 0:19:53.870,0:19:55.429 And it's your job to understand how to say 0:19:55.429,0:19:56.649 no. And I, this is actually a skill that 0:19:56.649,0:19:58.470 a lot of folks struggle with. I've had developers 0:19:58.470,0:20:00.259 on my teams actually come to me and say, 0:20:00.259,0:20:02.549 I feel very uncomfortable with what's being[br]asked of 0:20:02.549,0:20:04.590 me by this other manager, but I don't know 0:20:04.590,0:20:06.820 what to do. And often I say, do you 0:20:06.820,0:20:08.190 want me to tell them no for you? And 0:20:08.190,0:20:08.399 they say, yes. 0:20:08.399,0:20:11.909 And that's hard. That's that conflict that[br]we talked 0:20:11.909,0:20:13.220 about. You can't fear it. There's gonna be[br]a 0:20:13.220,0:20:16.519 time when you have to have integrity and learn 0:20:16.519,0:20:18.249 how to say no. Now that does not mean 0:20:18.249,0:20:20.179 just being contrary. That does not mean saying[br]no 0:20:20.179,0:20:22.369 and then walking away and flouncing out away[br]from 0:20:22.369,0:20:26.450 the argument. Again, it really means leveraging[br]your communication 0:20:26.450,0:20:28.269 skills that you hone so that you can say 0:20:28.269,0:20:30.090 no in a productive way. That you can move 0:20:30.090,0:20:32.889 past those disagreements. That you're willing[br]to yield if 0:20:32.889,0:20:35.720 you're not actually right. So balancing out[br]how to 0:20:35.720,0:20:37.190 say no, the art of saying no is very, 0:20:37.190,0:20:41.210 very tricky. And it requires a lot of courage. 0:20:41.210,0:20:43.740 When you start to set direction, your employees[br]may 0:20:43.740,0:20:46.249 not always buy in right away. Some people[br]may 0:20:46.249,0:20:50.119 fear not being liked, right. Sometimes you're[br]gonna have 0:20:50.119,0:20:52.249 to do uncomfortable things as a team. You[br]have 0:20:52.249,0:20:53.539 to have a vision. You have to believe in 0:20:53.539,0:20:55.159 it. You have to believe you're going the right 0:20:55.159,0:20:55.539 way. 0:20:55.539,0:20:58.159 A boss who does not have courage, who does 0:20:58.159,0:20:59.970 not have vision and does not believe in where 0:20:59.970,0:21:01.970 they're going will change with the wind. They[br]will 0:21:01.970,0:21:05.340 change coarse at every, every minor difficulty[br]that comes 0:21:05.340,0:21:06.690 up. They'll be like, you know what, this isn't 0:21:06.690,0:21:09.080 working. We'll just change frameworks. We'll[br]just hire more 0:21:09.080,0:21:11.249 people. You've probably worked for folks like[br]that. That's 0:21:11.249,0:21:12.909 not a very productive way to go. People want 0:21:12.909,0:21:15.860 to believe their leads know what they're doing.[br]So 0:21:15.860,0:21:17.409 you have to have vision and you have to 0:21:17.409,0:21:17.720 believe in it. 0:21:17.720,0:21:21.119 And having said that, you have to know the 0:21:21.119,0:21:22.289 difference between a bump in the road and[br]a 0:21:22.289,0:21:26.289 chasm around the corner. If there's a chasm[br]around 0:21:26.289,0:21:29.200 the corner, do not fear change. A lot of 0:21:29.200,0:21:30.629 folks fear change. They don't want to change[br]their 0:21:30.629,0:21:35.690 game plan. They get nervous because, well,[br]we've always 0:21:35.690,0:21:38.110 done it this way. I don't know, you know. 0:21:38.110,0:21:39.210 When we do it this new way, I don't 0:21:39.210,0:21:41.070 know that it's gonna be successful. Change[br]is very 0:21:41.070,0:21:43.990 scary. Bringing in new ideas, new thoughts,[br]new processes, 0:21:43.990,0:21:46.289 can be very, very difficult. So you have to 0:21:46.289,0:21:48.049 embrace change. You have to be an agent of 0:21:48.049,0:21:49.730 change. You have to be adaptable. 0:21:49.730,0:21:51.340 This last one. Always embrace the truth, even[br]when 0:21:51.340,0:21:54.480 it's unpleasant. People will tell their bosses[br]what they 0:21:54.480,0:21:57.879 think their bosses want to hear. It's natural.[br]It's 0:21:57.879,0:22:00.139 very important that you cultivate a culture[br]where honesty 0:22:00.139,0:22:02.860 is rewarded and treasured. Even when it's[br]unpleasant. Even 0:22:02.860,0:22:04.580 when you're hearing things you don't want[br]to hear. 0:22:04.580,0:22:06.809 I have had devs come to me many times 0:22:06.809,0:22:10.700 and say, so. About that production server. 0:22:10.700,0:22:12.190 You have to have an environment where it's[br]a 0:22:12.190,0:22:15.350 safe space to talk about what's really going[br]on. 0:22:15.350,0:22:17.980 Similarly, don't be that person to your boss.[br]Your 0:22:17.980,0:22:19.450 job is to communicate up to your boss and 0:22:19.450,0:22:21.230 give them the facts at all times. That goes 0:22:21.230,0:22:23.919 back to integrity. Sometimes your boss isn't[br]gonna like 0:22:23.919,0:22:25.879 it. Sometimes you're gonna look bad, because[br]it's going 0:22:25.879,0:22:27.139 to be a sign of a failure. But you 0:22:27.139,0:22:29.090 have to embrace the truth at all times. 0:22:29.090,0:22:33.279 So we've been talking a lot about people skills. 0:22:33.279,0:22:34.909 The art of managing people. And, again, that[br]is 0:22:34.909,0:22:37.950 a discipline all in, all encompassing on itself.[br]But 0:22:37.950,0:22:39.759 what about the project management skills,[br]right? What about 0:22:39.759,0:22:41.470 managing the work itself. 0:22:41.470,0:22:44.470 So, when you move into project management,[br]what does 0:22:44.470,0:22:47.080 it really mean? It means tracking work, measuring[br]the 0:22:47.080,0:22:50.240 work, tracking it, managing risk, and knowing[br]how to 0:22:50.240,0:22:54.460 report status. That second bullet is really[br]important. Again, 0:22:54.460,0:22:56.740 along the lines of, of not fearing failure,[br]your 0:22:56.740,0:23:00.210 job is not to be perfect. There's going to 0:23:00.210,0:23:01.580 be times where you're gonna make decisions[br]and you 0:23:01.580,0:23:04.600 don't like the outcome. Your job is to understand 0:23:04.600,0:23:06.649 the art of risk management. There are whole[br]classes 0:23:06.649,0:23:08.379 just on how to do risk management. 0:23:08.379,0:23:09.899 What you're really trying to do is make the 0:23:09.899,0:23:11.840 best decision with the facts that you have[br]at 0:23:11.840,0:23:13.769 the time, and then continue to measure that[br]and 0:23:13.769,0:23:15.139 stay on top of it and say, all right. 0:23:15.139,0:23:16.289 How does our risk look today? How does our 0:23:16.289,0:23:17.820 risk look today? Your job is not to do 0:23:17.820,0:23:19.929 the perfect job for your boss. Your job is 0:23:19.929,0:23:22.460 to let him manage risk. To give him an 0:23:22.460,0:23:25.710 informed choice. And, again, people who are[br]afraid to 0:23:25.710,0:23:27.330 tell the truth, who are afraid to communicate[br]upwards 0:23:27.330,0:23:29.429 what's really going on, those are the projects[br]that 0:23:29.429,0:23:34.129 burst into flames. Everyone's surprised. So[br]risk management's very 0:23:34.129,0:23:34.820 important. 0:23:34.820,0:23:36.990 To do these things, there are many techniques[br]you'd 0:23:36.990,0:23:39.230 apply and many frameworks. So you have to[br]like 0:23:39.230,0:23:42.330 process. You have to be a student of process. 0:23:42.330,0:23:44.869 There are a lot of different project management[br]frameworks 0:23:44.869,0:23:48.659 you can use. You've probably heard of them[br]before. 0:23:48.659,0:23:53.080 Waterfall, Spiral, Conbom, XP. Agile's all[br]the hotness. You 0:23:53.080,0:23:55.940 can do SCRUM. It's important that you respect[br]and 0:23:55.940,0:23:58.119 study all of them. And that's that last bullet 0:23:58.119,0:23:59.369 there. You have to like it but you can't 0:23:59.369,0:23:59.929 love it. 0:23:59.929,0:24:01.960 You can't be so in love with one framework 0:24:01.960,0:24:04.769 that you try to apply it in all situations. 0:24:04.769,0:24:07.850 Don't be dogmatic about the frameworks you[br]put into 0:24:07.850,0:24:10.369 place. There is nothing worse than an agile[br]person, 0:24:10.369,0:24:12.409 sometimes, cause they've, it's agile at all[br]costs no 0:24:12.409,0:24:14.779 matter what, even when it makes no sense.[br]It's 0:24:14.779,0:24:16.700 also very fashionable to poo poo things like[br]waterfall. 0:24:16.700,0:24:20.259 Waterfall has a place. It's very important[br]that you 0:24:20.259,0:24:23.309 understand how to assess the project that's[br]been given 0:24:23.309,0:24:25.259 to you, the people that have been given to 0:24:25.259,0:24:27.320 you, and then pick the framework that actually[br]fits 0:24:27.320,0:24:29.179 that situation. 0:24:29.179,0:24:31.299 It's really about picking the right tool for[br]the 0:24:31.299,0:24:33.119 job. When you have a hammer, every problem[br]looks 0:24:33.119,0:24:35.289 like a nail. 0:24:35.289,0:24:38.380 So, again, even if you don't use a framework 0:24:38.380,0:24:39.970 - like, I don't use Waterfall a lot, but 0:24:39.970,0:24:42.489 I still study it. I still look up books 0:24:42.489,0:24:44.989 on an occasion. I still read articles. I educate 0:24:44.989,0:24:46.600 myself about the different techniques that[br]are out there. 0:24:46.600,0:24:48.090 I want to know what tools are available to 0:24:48.090,0:24:50.059 me, even if I don't use them. So when 0:24:50.059,0:24:51.389 I see a problem that actually looks like a 0:24:51.389,0:24:52.769 screw, not a nail, I say, you know what? 0:24:52.769,0:24:53.409 I'm gonna try that screw-driver. 0:24:53.409,0:24:58.600 There are some administrative and financial[br]things that are 0:24:58.600,0:25:00.450 gonna affect how you manage. And, again, it[br]depends 0:25:00.450,0:25:01.889 where you are in the management chain how[br]much 0:25:01.889,0:25:04.710 influence you're gonna have over this. If[br]you're doing 0:25:04.710,0:25:06.409 a startup in particular, budgeting is going[br]to be 0:25:06.409,0:25:08.940 very important. You understand the concept[br]of colors of 0:25:08.940,0:25:11.509 money. That is basically money that is earmarked[br]for 0:25:11.509,0:25:13.720 a specific purpose. It cannot be used for[br]other 0:25:13.720,0:25:14.269 purposes. 0:25:14.269,0:25:16.460 So, again, if you have green dollars that[br]are 0:25:16.460,0:25:19.460 allocated for infrastructure, you may not[br]actually legally be 0:25:19.460,0:25:21.489 able to ship that money over. I used to 0:25:21.489,0:25:23.619 work in government contracting, and that's[br]something very important 0:25:23.619,0:25:25.100 that comes up in that, which is if the 0:25:25.100,0:25:27.590 government gives you a hundred thousand dollars[br]to buy 0:25:27.590,0:25:29.909 servers, you can't say, well, you know what,[br]I'm 0:25:29.909,0:25:30.419 a little short and I want to pay some 0:25:30.419,0:25:31.919 bonuses to my folks, so I just won't buy 0:25:31.919,0:25:32.379 the servers. 0:25:32.379,0:25:34.570 So you have to understand how budgeting works.[br]How 0:25:34.570,0:25:36.039 do you project a budget? How do you do 0:25:36.039,0:25:39.100 quarterly reports? What is the impact of your[br]outcome, 0:25:39.100,0:25:41.830 your income? How does salary work? How do[br]you, 0:25:41.830,0:25:43.489 how does salary affect how you project? 0:25:43.489,0:25:46.090 So those are really important things. That's[br]a hard 0:25:46.090,0:25:47.909 skill. That's something I struggle with. That's[br]not something 0:25:47.909,0:25:49.809 you're gonna be exposed to in your day-to-day[br]life 0:25:49.809,0:25:53.080 as an engineer until you move over. So understanding 0:25:53.080,0:25:54.700 how budget works, how money flows at your[br]company 0:25:54.700,0:25:55.879 is critically important. 0:25:55.879,0:25:58.529 We talked about the hard power you're imbued[br]with. 0:25:58.529,0:26:03.279 Hiring folks, retention and firing. It is[br]incredibly expensive 0:26:03.279,0:26:05.360 to hire folks, which is why retention is so 0:26:05.360,0:26:07.629 important. There were actually some tremendous[br]talks on Wednesday. 0:26:07.629,0:26:10.200 I recommend you go watch the videos on how 0:26:10.200,0:26:11.619 to onboard folks, how to set up a training 0:26:11.619,0:26:13.659 plan. Retaining talent once you get in the[br]door 0:26:13.659,0:26:17.799 is really important because hiring is so expensive. 0:26:17.799,0:26:19.159 Having said that, there will be times when[br]the 0:26:19.159,0:26:20.499 person is not a fit, and if you have 0:26:20.499,0:26:22.570 to fire them, you have to understand the implications 0:26:22.570,0:26:26.309 of that decision. Each state has different[br]right-to-work laws. 0:26:26.309,0:26:29.480 So you need to understand the process for[br]both 0:26:29.480,0:26:32.019 hiring and firing folks. That's gonna be very[br]important. 0:26:32.019,0:26:33.720 So making sure you work with your HR folks 0:26:33.720,0:26:36.090 and get educated on the various laws is very 0:26:36.090,0:26:36.710 important. 0:26:36.710,0:26:39.419 I know I said that it wasn't all TPS 0:26:39.419,0:26:40.999 reports, but it is at times. I don't even 0:26:40.999,0:26:42.619 know what a TPS report is. I just use 0:26:42.619,0:26:45.090 that as shorthand for the mandatory documents[br]that seem 0:26:45.090,0:26:47.110 like no fun but you have to do them. 0:26:47.110,0:26:48.230 And that's a thing. You do have to do 0:26:48.230,0:26:51.320 them. It's your responsibility to understand[br]what regulations are 0:26:51.320,0:26:52.909 in place, what documents have to be done.[br]Now, 0:26:52.909,0:26:55.559 sometimes these are mandated from the, the[br]corporate overlords 0:26:55.559,0:26:57.610 and I've done that before. 0:26:57.610,0:26:59.119 But there are other legal documents that may[br]come 0:26:59.119,0:27:01.100 in depending on the industry you're in. I[br]am 0:27:01.100,0:27:03.159 in ciber security. Privacy laws are very important[br]to 0:27:03.159,0:27:05.899 us. Understanding privacy laws. You're taking[br]in peoples' data, 0:27:05.899,0:27:07.460 you better understand what you're supposed[br]to do with 0:27:07.460,0:27:09.309 it. If you work in healthcare, HIPPA's gonna[br]come 0:27:09.309,0:27:09.960 into play. 0:27:09.960,0:27:12.679 So really making sure that you're educating[br]yourself on 0:27:12.679,0:27:16.049 the legal and regulatory documents that you[br]need to 0:27:16.049,0:27:17.480 be aware of is very important as you move 0:27:17.480,0:27:19.730 into management. But it's kind of fun, because[br]this 0:27:19.730,0:27:21.090 is the part that you probably won't get exposed 0:27:21.090,0:27:22.799 to a lot, and I actually kind of enjoy 0:27:22.799,0:27:25.580 seeing these different things, these different[br]areas that I 0:27:25.580,0:27:26.889 didn't, that I didn't really get a sense of 0:27:26.889,0:27:28.980 when I was just an engineer. A lot of 0:27:28.980,0:27:30.590 this stuff is really the guts of what makes 0:27:30.590,0:27:32.509 a company go. 0:27:32.509,0:27:33.929 OK. 0:27:33.929,0:27:37.039 So, hopefully you're tempted now. You're like,[br]oh, you 0:27:37.039,0:27:38.600 know what, management doesn't sound so terrible.[br]Maybe it's 0:27:38.600,0:27:40.039 pretty good. Maybe I've got some of those[br]skills. 0:27:40.039,0:27:41.460 Maybe I'd like to work on them. I'm ready 0:27:41.460,0:27:45.049 to make the leap. 0:27:45.049,0:27:46.399 So let's talk about when and how to do 0:27:46.399,0:27:47.009 that. 0:27:47.009,0:27:50.889 Moving into management. Number one, find a[br]mentor. Find 0:27:50.889,0:27:53.119 a safe person to help teach you the ways, 0:27:53.119,0:27:55.480 a Jedi master that you can go to. I 0:27:55.480,0:27:57.340 have several mentors who are senior leaders[br]that I 0:27:57.340,0:27:58.960 like to talk to to kind of bounce ideas 0:27:58.960,0:28:01.950 off of. Again, you're not perfect. So find[br]someone 0:28:01.950,0:28:03.249 who can help you with that. 0:28:03.249,0:28:05.279 Try before you buy. Many of you are already 0:28:05.279,0:28:08.450 in leadership roles. You may not have formal[br]powers 0:28:08.450,0:28:10.989 of hiring and firing, but you're starting[br]to lead 0:28:10.989,0:28:13.009 people. So look for those opportunities. If[br]you're interested 0:28:13.009,0:28:14.999 in this, try it out. Say, you know what, 0:28:14.999,0:28:16.559 I see this project's coming up. I'd love to 0:28:16.559,0:28:19.190 lead it. Or hey, you know, these two guys, 0:28:19.190,0:28:21.009 I'd love to take them under my wing. Mentor 0:28:21.009,0:28:23.590 them. Maybe be part of the review process.[br]That's 0:28:23.590,0:28:24.869 a great way to sort of try it out, 0:28:24.869,0:28:25.950 see if it's a fit for you. It's not 0:28:25.950,0:28:28.109 for everyone. But you may be surprised how[br]much 0:28:28.109,0:28:29.919 you really find it rewarding. I love working[br]with 0:28:29.919,0:28:31.999 people. I was, that's how I ended up in 0:28:31.999,0:28:33.889 management. I was doing an informal leadership[br]role and 0:28:33.889,0:28:35.629 I really enjoyed it and I wanted to continue 0:28:35.629,0:28:36.809 down that track. 0:28:36.809,0:28:39.619 Learn to think company wide. Again, there[br]are other 0:28:39.619,0:28:40.970 areas of the business you need to be aware 0:28:40.970,0:28:43.049 of. So go on a sales call. Go to 0:28:43.049,0:28:45.029 a conference and help the marketing guys run[br]a, 0:28:45.029,0:28:47.659 be a booth babe. I've done that before. It's 0:28:47.659,0:28:49.440 actually a lot of fun. It's a different perspective. 0:28:49.440,0:28:51.859 Understand how to court your customers. Go[br]help the 0:28:51.859,0:28:54.549 ops guys. Go sit in the customer support center 0:28:54.549,0:28:56.950 for awhile and take calls for them and understand 0:28:56.950,0:28:58.970 what happens in the rest of the company. 0:28:58.970,0:29:00.859 And mostly, have an idea of what kind of 0:29:00.859,0:29:03.330 leadership style you have. There is no one[br]prescriptive 0:29:03.330,0:29:05.220 way to do it. There's no one way to 0:29:05.220,0:29:07.700 lead people. Everyone's different. We're all,[br]we're all different, 0:29:07.700,0:29:09.679 unique snowflakes. The people we manage are[br]different snowflakes. 0:29:09.679,0:29:12.869 They may require different types of leadership[br]style. So 0:29:12.869,0:29:14.259 think about what kind of leader you want to 0:29:14.259,0:29:16.279 be and then practice the skills to do that. 0:29:16.279,0:29:19.519 So some of the big questions that came up 0:29:19.519,0:29:20.999 as I was starting to prepare this talk and 0:29:20.999,0:29:23.139 talk to some of my peers. I think this 0:29:23.139,0:29:24.519 is one that's on a lot of folks' mind. 0:29:24.519,0:29:26.759 If it's a career change, I'm leaving the technical 0:29:26.759,0:29:28.090 track. Do I still get to write code? And 0:29:28.090,0:29:30.429 the answer is yes. Sort of. 0:29:30.429,0:29:33.299 I've actually talked to a lot of folks about 0:29:33.299,0:29:34.950 this in the last couple of weeks and I've 0:29:34.950,0:29:36.019 met some people who say, you know what, I 0:29:36.019,0:29:37.690 can code eighty-five percent of the time and[br]manage 0:29:37.690,0:29:39.789 fifteen percent of the time. And that's fantastic[br]if 0:29:39.789,0:29:42.049 you can do that. It's really gonna depend[br]on 0:29:42.049,0:29:43.710 the needs of your company and the size of 0:29:43.710,0:29:46.970 your company. It is absolutely your job to[br]stay 0:29:46.970,0:29:49.259 technical. You are supervising technical people.[br]You need to 0:29:49.259,0:29:51.149 know what they're talking about. 0:29:51.149,0:29:53.570 Having said that, your priority is no longer[br]writing 0:29:53.570,0:29:57.739 code. That's your team's job. You might be[br]the 0:29:57.739,0:29:59.159 only person on the team who can go brief 0:29:59.159,0:30:01.210 the executives. You're the only one, I've[br]had to 0:30:01.210,0:30:02.769 take an hour out of my day to look 0:30:02.769,0:30:05.679 at everyone's expense reports. That's not[br]exactly more fun 0:30:05.679,0:30:07.950 than writing code, but those expense reports[br]matter to 0:30:07.950,0:30:09.799 the people who are waiting on that money.[br]So 0:30:09.799,0:30:11.149 you're gonna have other priorities that are[br]gonna come 0:30:11.149,0:30:12.629 up on that code. 0:30:12.629,0:30:13.779 So usually I like to give a little bit 0:30:13.779,0:30:15.230 of advice. If you want to stay involved in 0:30:15.230,0:30:18.590 the code, a couple of things you can do: 0:30:18.590,0:30:24.109 So, number one, participate in code reviews.[br]I do 0:30:24.109,0:30:25.499 a lot of code reviews these days. I don't 0:30:25.499,0:30:26.820 write a lot of code from scratch, but I 0:30:26.820,0:30:28.710 do at least stay involved in the code by 0:30:28.710,0:30:31.580 being part of the review process, downloading[br]it, poking 0:30:31.580,0:30:33.059 it, running the tests and that kind of stuff, 0:30:33.059,0:30:34.450 and it's a great way to continue to learn 0:30:34.450,0:30:35.779 and stay involved. 0:30:35.779,0:30:38.169 It's very important that if you decide a part 0:30:38.169,0:30:40.509 of your day job should still involve working[br]on 0:30:40.509,0:30:42.980 code, I would recommend not working on critical[br]path 0:30:42.980,0:30:45.700 items. Because, again, there may be some management[br]crisis 0:30:45.700,0:30:47.739 that comes up that only you can work on. 0:30:47.739,0:30:49.259 And it would suck to hold the whole team 0:30:49.259,0:30:51.429 up just because you haven't finished your[br]chunk of 0:30:51.429,0:30:54.259 the code. So look for opportunities of maybe[br]some, 0:30:54.259,0:30:57.249 some low-hanging fruit, some quick wins. I[br]actually, just 0:30:57.249,0:30:59.009 the other day, picked up some code and successfully 0:30:59.009,0:31:01.659 merged to master because I was working some[br]defects 0:31:01.659,0:31:03.799 that weren't on the critical path. But they[br]got 0:31:03.799,0:31:05.220 in and it was nice and I still got 0:31:05.220,0:31:07.909 to, to exercise my code writing skills. 0:31:07.909,0:31:10.229 Also, maybe work on some side projects. That's[br]usually 0:31:10.229,0:31:11.929 how I try to stay in, involved with things 0:31:11.929,0:31:14.019 that are going on in technology. You just[br]might 0:31:14.019,0:31:15.200 not have a lot of time during your day 0:31:15.200,0:31:17.359 job to write code anymore. So your mileage[br]is 0:31:17.359,0:31:19.289 gonna vary. I left my last job because I 0:31:19.289,0:31:21.210 knew at that job, to continue up the management 0:31:21.210,0:31:23.369 chain meant I could no longer write code,[br]period. 0:31:23.369,0:31:24.659 And I didn't want that. So I went to 0:31:24.659,0:31:26.029 a smaller company, and I still have about[br]ten 0:31:26.029,0:31:27.570 percent of my day where I get to be 0:31:27.570,0:31:28.700 in the code in one way or the other. 0:31:28.700,0:31:31.049 So I feel pretty good about that. 0:31:31.049,0:31:33.850 Can I still be friends with my employees?[br]This 0:31:33.850,0:31:36.169 is a tricky one. The answer is yes, sort 0:31:36.169,0:31:38.989 of. Again, many of you may be promoted out 0:31:38.989,0:31:41.059 of the very ranks where your friends are.[br]Yet, 0:31:41.059,0:31:43.369 we're all fellow engineers. We're, we're,[br]we hang out, 0:31:43.369,0:31:46.309 we go to beers. Now I'm their boss. This 0:31:46.309,0:31:50.149 is a very sensitive topic. So, if you want 0:31:50.149,0:31:52.369 to be friends with your employees, that's,[br]that's completely 0:31:52.369,0:31:54.580 fine, but it is very important that you have 0:31:54.580,0:31:56.259 a system of firewalls in place so that you're 0:31:56.259,0:31:59.789 separating your personal relationship from[br]your professional relationship. And 0:31:59.789,0:32:01.509 you have to think very hard about the impact 0:32:01.509,0:32:03.369 of your friendship and how public you are[br]with 0:32:03.369,0:32:05.979 your friendship on the rest of the company. 0:32:05.979,0:32:08.879 If Jeff the engineer hangs out with Jane the 0:32:08.879,0:32:10.690 manager all the time and he's at her house 0:32:10.690,0:32:12.739 and their spouses are best friends and, you[br]know 0:32:12.739,0:32:15.369 they're doing things every weekend and, and[br]their kids 0:32:15.369,0:32:17.830 play together, and then Jeff wins engineer[br]of the 0:32:17.830,0:32:19.799 quarter. How does that come across to the[br]rest 0:32:19.799,0:32:22.070 of the team? He might actually be worthy of 0:32:22.070,0:32:23.749 engineer of the quarter, but perception is[br]reality. So 0:32:23.749,0:32:25.139 you have to be very, very sensitive to the 0:32:25.139,0:32:26.919 realities of that if you're going to maintain[br]those 0:32:26.919,0:32:28.059 friendships. 0:32:28.059,0:32:30.279 It can also go the other way. I actually 0:32:30.279,0:32:32.159 had a boss where I worked with, who was 0:32:32.159,0:32:33.369 a very good friend of mine. He brought me 0:32:33.369,0:32:36.279 onto his team. And we have a very saucy 0:32:36.279,0:32:39.419 relationship. He'll tell no, eff you, and[br]I'll say 0:32:39.419,0:32:40.720 eff you and then we hug and have a 0:32:40.720,0:32:42.149 beer and it's fine. And that's fine. But he 0:32:42.149,0:32:43.440 actually said that to me in the work place 0:32:43.440,0:32:45.119 once. And he said it in front of other 0:32:45.119,0:32:50.009 co-workers. And he was very incapable, ultimately,[br]of separating 0:32:50.009,0:32:51.559 how we spoke to each other as friends at 0:32:51.559,0:32:53.129 the bar, from how we spoke to each in 0:32:53.129,0:32:54.850 the work place, and it actually caused a lot 0:32:54.850,0:32:56.749 of problems on our team. And it actually upset 0:32:56.749,0:32:58.100 me a lot, because I would never allow a 0:32:58.100,0:33:00.019 boss to say that to me. And he couldn't 0:33:00.019,0:33:01.729 put his boss hat on and put his friend 0:33:01.729,0:33:03.850 hat aside, so I had, I ended up leaving 0:33:03.850,0:33:05.769 that team and he's still one of my best 0:33:05.769,0:33:07.739 friends and I will never work for him again. 0:33:07.739,0:33:10.210 He's actually a good guy. He's a good boss 0:33:10.210,0:33:13.729 if you're not his friend. So be very sensitive 0:33:13.729,0:33:15.220 to the, to the impact of this. This is 0:33:15.220,0:33:17.769 a, this is a, this is a tricky one. 0:33:17.769,0:33:20.739 You can be friendly, but, but be careful. 0:33:20.739,0:33:24.570 Lastly, do I need to have a PMP certification? 0:33:24.570,0:33:26.859 Project manager professional certification[br]or something like that. And 0:33:26.859,0:33:29.109 the answer is absolutely not. And, again,[br]it's gonna 0:33:29.109,0:33:30.970 depend on the kind of company you're at. If 0:33:30.970,0:33:33.710 you're a small company, you may never need[br]this. 0:33:33.710,0:33:35.269 Having said that, the PMP can be nice. It's 0:33:35.269,0:33:36.779 nice to have. It's a box checked on your 0:33:36.779,0:33:38.609 resume. I've actually had people pick my resume[br]and 0:33:38.609,0:33:40.279 say, oh good, you have a PMP. But I 0:33:40.279,0:33:43.499 don't think it's gonna exclude you from jobs.[br]The 0:33:43.499,0:33:44.840 only exception might be if you go into a 0:33:44.840,0:33:46.340 very, very large company. 0:33:46.340,0:33:47.950 The government act- the reason I have my PMP 0:33:47.950,0:33:50.679 is the government decided they wouldn't allow[br]program managers 0:33:50.679,0:33:53.210 that didn't have a PMP certification, so away[br]I 0:33:53.210,0:33:55.279 went to class. That's why I'm not in government 0:33:55.279,0:33:56.379 contracting anymore, for many reasons. 0:33:56.379,0:34:00.669 A few final thoughts. It's important that[br]you self-examine 0:34:00.669,0:34:02.330 all the time. Think about the type of leader 0:34:02.330,0:34:04.389 you want to be versus the kind of leader 0:34:04.389,0:34:06.859 you're actually being. So I kind of wanted[br]to 0:34:06.859,0:34:08.710 close out here by sharing a few key leadership 0:34:08.710,0:34:11.399 principles and thoughts that guide me personally,[br]just to 0:34:11.399,0:34:13.139 let you know what kind of leader I actually 0:34:13.139,0:34:15.840 am. I hope. On a good day. 0:34:15.840,0:34:17.340 That last bullet is very important to me.[br]Leaders 0:34:17.340,0:34:19.359 eat last. Goes back to that concept I told 0:34:19.359,0:34:21.139 you about with the, the team leader who took 0:34:21.139,0:34:22.579 all the best work for himself and left his 0:34:22.579,0:34:27.480 leavings for the minions. He was eating first. 0:34:27.480,0:34:29.589 I had a boss once who, we said, you 0:34:29.589,0:34:31.250 know what, we want to go to training. We 0:34:31.250,0:34:32.940 put together a training plan for him. We said, 0:34:32.940,0:34:34.730 this is the course. This is the location.[br]These 0:34:34.730,0:34:36.500 are the people we think should go. He looked 0:34:36.500,0:34:37.799 at it and he said, that looks pretty good. 0:34:37.799,0:34:39.869 And then he sent himself to training. He went 0:34:39.869,0:34:42.309 to the training himself. And we said well,[br]why 0:34:42.309,0:34:44.309 did you do that? And he said, well, I 0:34:44.309,0:34:45.899 wanted to make sure the training was appropriate[br]for 0:34:45.899,0:34:50.219 you. That was a really informative moment[br]for me. 0:34:50.219,0:34:51.849 I've learned a lot from my bad bosses believe 0:34:51.849,0:34:53.839 it or not. I've taken a lot of notes. 0:34:53.839,0:34:54.989 And I saw how devastating that impact was[br]on 0:34:54.989,0:34:57.020 the team. Not only because he was eating first 0:34:57.020,0:34:59.250 and taking training before anyone else in[br]his team, 0:34:59.250,0:35:00.829 but also the lack of trust that that implied. 0:35:00.829,0:35:02.150 He didn't trust you to go to training and 0:35:02.150,0:35:04.420 come back and give him an assessment of whether 0:35:04.420,0:35:06.750 or not he should send other folks. So it's 0:35:06.750,0:35:08.660 very important that you put your team first.[br]Your 0:35:08.660,0:35:11.670 teams' needs come first at all times. 0:35:11.670,0:35:12.609 Lead from the front. What does that mean?[br]It 0:35:12.609,0:35:14.839 means don't do, don't ask them to do anything 0:35:14.839,0:35:15.930 you are not willing to do yourself. If you 0:35:15.930,0:35:20.020 don't want to work weekends, why should they?[br]They, 0:35:20.020,0:35:21.319 you don't want to do the unfun work. You 0:35:21.319,0:35:23.569 don't want to do QA. QA is unfun sometimes, 0:35:23.569,0:35:25.339 but I do it because I expect them to 0:35:25.339,0:35:28.030 do it. Leading from the front is the difference 0:35:28.030,0:35:29.799 between being on the top picture and being[br]on 0:35:29.799,0:35:35.420 the bottom picture. 0:35:35.420,0:35:37.230 Along similar lines, it's not your employees'[br]job to 0:35:37.230,0:35:39.210 feel your pain. There's nothing worse than[br]a boss 0:35:39.210,0:35:41.510 who complains down and expects their employees[br]to make 0:35:41.510,0:35:43.910 sure that their job is happy. Your job is 0:35:43.910,0:35:45.619 to make their job happy. That's what your[br]job 0:35:45.619,0:35:48.670 is. If you want to complain about your pain, 0:35:48.670,0:35:50.400 that's what your boss is for. It flows uphill. 0:35:50.400,0:35:52.460 It doesn't go down. A lot of bosses cannot 0:35:52.460,0:35:55.880 maintain that separation, particularly if[br]they're friends with their 0:35:55.880,0:35:59.760 employees. So nobody cares what you want.[br]Your job 0:35:59.760,0:36:01.309 is to make sure the work gets done. Their 0:36:01.309,0:36:02.770 job is to execute on that work. Not stop 0:36:02.770,0:36:04.559 what they're doing to console you or make[br]you 0:36:04.559,0:36:05.980 feel better about your day. 0:36:05.980,0:36:08.690 I believe a high-performing team will always[br]be greater 0:36:08.690,0:36:10.460 than the sum of its parts. The ten x 0:36:10.460,0:36:12.309 engineers are great, they're great to have[br]on your 0:36:12.309,0:36:14.740 team. I believe a team of average engineers[br]truly 0:36:14.740,0:36:17.950 working together will always outperform that[br]one engineer. I 0:36:17.950,0:36:20.430 like to cult. So, everything I do, every moment 0:36:20.430,0:36:22.079 of my day is really about, am I establishing 0:36:22.079,0:36:24.069 a team environment? Am I establishing the[br]kind of 0:36:24.069,0:36:27.549 culture where team comes first? And, again,[br]trying to 0:36:27.549,0:36:29.079 be selfless is a great way to start if 0:36:29.079,0:36:30.680 you want to cultivate that kind of environment. 0:36:30.680,0:36:33.710 Finally, you're never done learning. Another[br]quote from Vince 0:36:33.710,0:36:36.549 Lambardi. Leaders are not born, they are made,[br]and 0:36:36.549,0:36:38.530 they are made just like anything else: through[br]hard 0:36:38.530,0:36:39.900 work. And that's the price we'll have to pay 0:36:39.900,0:36:43.270 to achieve that goal, or any goal. I've been 0:36:43.270,0:36:45.410 studying this for eighteen years. I'm gonna[br]study it 0:36:45.410,0:36:46.680 for the rest of my life. I will always 0:36:46.680,0:36:49.130 continue to improve, hopefully. I'm always[br]trying to learn 0:36:49.130,0:36:52.270 new things, talk to other leaders, read books.[br]I 0:36:52.270,0:36:53.579 may do this presentation in a year. It may 0:36:53.579,0:36:55.190 be completely different, cause maybe, I hope,[br]I hope 0:36:55.190,0:36:56.829 it's different. Cause I hope I've learned[br]something new 0:36:56.829,0:36:59.630 and amazing about leadership that I can share. 0:36:59.630,0:37:03.299 Lastly, I'd like to leave with a quote on, 0:37:03.299,0:37:05.470 from Admiral Grace Hopper, a pioneer in the[br]computer 0:37:05.470,0:37:08.089 science industry, great military leader. He[br]said, you manage 0:37:08.089,0:37:10.599 things. You lead people. The key to being[br]a 0:37:10.599,0:37:13.650 good boss is really understand the nuance[br]of that. 0:37:13.650,0:37:16.170 You manage things. You lead people. You use[br]things. 0:37:16.170,0:37:19.109 You don't use people. Understanding the difference[br]between those 0:37:19.109,0:37:22.750 concepts is really the key to leadership. 0:37:22.750,0:37:24.359 I said I'd tell you where to find resources 0:37:24.359,0:37:25.770 so I'm gonna put this up right here. I 0:37:25.770,0:37:27.720 will share on the next slide, there's going[br]to 0:37:27.720,0:37:29.720 be a, a link to my deck, so don't 0:37:29.720,0:37:31.140 feel you have to write this down right now. 0:37:31.140,0:37:32.750 Very quickly, if you're tr- if your company[br]will 0:37:32.750,0:37:34.640 pay for training, take advantage of it. It[br]may 0:37:34.640,0:37:37.569 sound dorky to go to a week-long communication[br]class. 0:37:37.569,0:37:38.859 There's a lot you can learn if you're humble 0:37:38.859,0:37:41.960 enough to admit you have something to learn.[br]There's 0:37:41.960,0:37:43.559 a lot of free resources on the internet. TED 0:37:43.559,0:37:45.380 talks. There's a lot of talks about leadership[br]there. 0:37:45.380,0:37:46.740 There's other videos I'm sure you can go out 0:37:46.740,0:37:48.339 and seek it. There's a lot of videos of 0:37:48.339,0:37:49.280 notable speakers. 0:37:49.280,0:37:52.170 PMI is the Project Management Institute. If[br]you have 0:37:52.170,0:37:55.430 your PMP certification, they have free resources.[br]Webinars, dinners 0:37:55.430,0:37:58.710 you can go to. History is a really important 0:37:58.710,0:38:00.910 one. We're at RailsConf thinking, like, oh[br]my god, 0:38:00.910,0:38:04.289 Rails is ten years old. We're so old. Leadership 0:38:04.289,0:38:05.900 has been around since the dawn of man. Since 0:38:05.900,0:38:07.460 one caveman turned to another and said, you[br]know 0:38:07.460,0:38:10.109 what, if we got some guys together, we could 0:38:10.109,0:38:11.670 kill that mammoth. 0:38:11.670,0:38:13.630 That's project management right there. You[br]stab the left 0:38:13.630,0:38:14.940 side. That's your job. And I'm gonna stab[br]the 0:38:14.940,0:38:17.119 right side. And our success criteria will[br]be the 0:38:17.119,0:38:18.770 mammoth is dead. 0:38:18.770,0:38:23.380 So don't be afraid to look. Obviously management,[br]leadership 0:38:23.380,0:38:25.030 is an evolving art, and yet some of the 0:38:25.030,0:38:28.390 fundamental things that drive people are,[br]have remained the 0:38:28.390,0:38:30.420 same over thousands of years. Sun Su's Art[br]of 0:38:30.420,0:38:33.500 War is still studied by military leaders today.[br]Abraham 0:38:33.500,0:38:35.549 Lincoln, the great sixteenth American President[br]has so much 0:38:35.549,0:38:37.359 to teach us about how to apply hard power 0:38:37.359,0:38:40.589 versus soft power. See the movie Lincoln.[br]I am 0:38:40.589,0:38:42.390 the President of the United States clothed[br]in immense 0:38:42.390,0:38:44.280 power and I will have this bill. That's hard 0:38:44.280,0:38:46.599 power. But then the other scene where he's[br]talking 0:38:46.599,0:38:48.289 to Tom Lee Jones, the senator, and he's convincing 0:38:48.289,0:38:49.980 him. Cause that guy doesn't have to listen[br]to 0:38:49.980,0:38:51.549 him. He said, let me tell you a story. 0:38:51.549,0:38:53.599 Let me show you an analogy about why you 0:38:53.599,0:38:55.700 need to do this. Let me convince you. Soft 0:38:55.700,0:38:57.039 power. 0:38:57.039,0:38:59.599 So study great leaders in history. Church[br]Hill, Steve 0:38:59.599,0:39:02.990 Jobs. Go as far back as you want. I'm 0:39:02.990,0:39:05.039 a reader. I like books. I looked up management 0:39:05.039,0:39:07.829 on Amazon. I got back 900,000 hits, so there 0:39:07.829,0:39:10.059 are plenty of books out there. I will quote 0:39:10.059,0:39:11.990 DHH a little bit here and say beware of 0:39:11.990,0:39:14.250 books that are diet-esque, in other words,[br]this management 0:39:14.250,0:39:16.420 style will change your life in fifteen minutes.[br]So 0:39:16.420,0:39:18.160 take it with a grain of salt. 0:39:18.160,0:39:19.740 These are three books I recommend. I just[br]read 0:39:19.740,0:39:21.260 them. And, again, going back to that learning[br]from 0:39:21.260,0:39:23.359 people in history, Dale Carnegie wrote a tremendous[br]book 0:39:23.359,0:39:25.390 called How to Make Friends and Influence People,[br]which 0:39:25.390,0:39:27.349 is really about the art of communication.[br]How to 0:39:27.349,0:39:30.490 write criticism without crushing people. How[br]to, how to, 0:39:30.490,0:39:33.539 how to basically influence, influence folks[br]in a positive 0:39:33.539,0:39:35.210 way. He wrote that in 1935 and it still 0:39:35.210,0:39:36.839 resonates today. It's still one of the twelve[br]most 0:39:36.839,0:39:39.799 influential business books I think in some,[br]some article 0:39:39.799,0:39:42.410 by Business Inc. Warren Buffet said that book[br]changed 0:39:42.410,0:39:44.089 his life. And he's a billionaire, so maybe[br]he 0:39:44.089,0:39:46.010 knows some stuff. 0:39:46.010,0:39:47.640 And then, finally, again, studying frameworks.[br]Agile Samurai is 0:39:47.640,0:39:49.359 a great touch point if you want to get 0:39:49.359,0:39:52.789 into learning about Agile frameworks. And[br]I finished right 0:39:52.789,0:39:55.140 on time, so go me. If you want to 0:39:55.140,0:39:57.490 find me on Twitter at mad_typist. Learn from[br]the 0:39:57.490,0:39:59.160 leaders around you as well. I'm happy to talk 0:39:59.160,0:40:01.339 to you about my thoughts on leadership at[br]any 0:40:01.339,0:40:03.130 time. If you want to see my terrible public 0:40:03.130,0:40:05.780 code, it's right there on GitHub. You can[br]actually 0:40:05.780,0:40:07.000 look at my commit record and you know when 0:40:07.000,0:40:09.190 releases are happening, cause it goes stark[br]white because 0:40:09.190,0:40:10.710 I have no time to code because I'm putting 0:40:10.710,0:40:13.140 out a thousand fires. And lastly, you can[br]get 0:40:13.140,0:40:15.609 these slides on speakerdeck. That's the link[br]there. 0:40:15.609,0:40:17.930 Thank you guys so much for coming. I think 0:40:17.930,0:40:21.930 I've got maybe a minute or two for questions. 0:40:21.930,0:40:24.790 Or you can clap first.