What’s the sweet spot for a self-evaluation? First, what’s your goal as an employee in a self-evaluation? Let’s separate out idealism from reality first off. Of course it would be nice if a self-evaluation were a chance for you to honestly reflect on your work for the past year, be proud of your achievements and …
Month: April 2022
Shutting up is a power move. Better: an empowering move. If you can get out of your own head for long enough to shut up and listen to the other person, amazing things happen. Version 1: The ramble. Agree to listen for ten minutes with a neutral expression and without responding or giving feedback, even …
It took a long time for me to realize my influence on my coworkers’ work atmosphere. In my scrum team’s retros, I began to notice that wherever my mood rating was, others’ would cluster around it. I had a great past two weeks? So did everyone else. I was in a pessimistic mood? I dragged …
It took two years of pandemic-induced reduced face-to-face contact before I experienced something extroverts apparently find completely ordinary: the feeling of being recharged after a social interaction. For the first time in my life, I understood how it might feel to be powered primarily by interaction with others. I found the experience of comprehending another …
I had to get over myself to do this project: I mentally picture stepping over myself, who is lying down in the way, waving her arms and objecting feebly, “But what if no one reads it? What if I run out of ideas after three weeks?” What would I say to anyone else asking me …
Today would have been my brother-in-law’s birthday. Over dinner a couple of days ago, my wife told me about an automated message she had received. “It’s almost Lothar’s birthday! Do you want help planning a party?” She had tears in her eyes. Think about all the people who had a hand in creating this feature. …
Assigning job candidates a programming task to complete at home, despite having some problems, isn’t going away anytime soon. So how about some advice? Usually you’ll have a set deadline. Good companies will indicate roughly how much time they think the task will take and not expect you to spend more than a few hours …
Assigning potential employees a software task to complete before their interview has become normal. Is this a bad practice? It assumes that the candidate has or can quickly get all the equipment and programs necessary. It assumes that the candidate, who is often already working full-time and may be going through multiple job application processes, …
Horse, it’s been another anniversary of the date we met each other, and that seems like a good time for a performance review. I am aware that you don’t care very much what I think about you, except for the part where I give you carrots, but I hope you will consider my words carefully. …