Following on from my Journey Through Sexism and after yet another technology-industry-gender-incident, I formed a theory and decided to put it to the test. Here is my theory. My theory is that if I trawl Twitter for feedback on talks and conferences I will find that male speakers would be praised for their skill and/orContinue reading “Conference Circuit Sexism”
Category Archives: Psychology
Individual Feedback is Better than General Feedback
We’ve all been there – that awkward conversation that you have to have with someone you work with. It isn’t enjoyable and it is hard work. Nevertheless, don’t shy away from having that one-to-one conversation with the individual, because it is the best way to get the right outcome. A common escape-route that gets usedContinue reading “Individual Feedback is Better than General Feedback”
Alternative Culture and Respecting People
People like to associate with other groups of people. Very nearly everyone does this and it is a normal thing to do. Often these groups associate with each other through music and style. So I was sat in a coffee shop recently and a couple of people came in sporting amazing red hair and wearingContinue reading “Alternative Culture and Respecting People”
The Pitch Drop Experiment Learning Metaphor
Professor John Mainstone has been spending a great deal of time watching a slowly forming droplet of pitch, in an experiment started by Professor Thomas Parnell in 1927 to study the substance. The pitch was actually given three years to settle before the study started in 1930, but in the following 83 years there wereContinue reading “The Pitch Drop Experiment Learning Metaphor”
Disk Optimisation in Your Brain
I wrote a while ago about how context switching comes at a high price, and I used a comparison to computers to explain the problems. Brace yourselves, because I’m going to do it again – partly inspired by some of the chapters I read in CLR via C# by Jeffrey Richter and Why Plans FailContinue reading “Disk Optimisation in Your Brain”
Disciplined Reading
I have been reading books for quite a while and keep a record of everything I read (on Goodreads) along with a note on books I highly recommend to someone doing a similar role. I do this because I know that the biggest leaps I have made in terms of changing my mindset and increasingContinue reading “Disciplined Reading”
Command and Control in Agile Teams
Although Agile can start anywhere in an organisation, very often it starts somewhere near programmers. Very often it will be a programmer who has had prior exposure to Agile or a development team who introduces the process or framework. There is a hidden danger in this that is often overlooked. As a programmer, I findContinue reading “Command and Control in Agile Teams”
Why You Still Have an Unused Pluralsight Free Trial Card
Firstly, I put my hands up and tell you that I am guilty as charged on all counts – but I think my experience with Pluralsight free trial cards will help others who are suffering as I am right now! So you went to a big event, such as Developer South Coast and you’ve wonContinue reading “Why You Still Have an Unused Pluralsight Free Trial Card”
Why Programmers Should Learn to Touch Type
There is a common misconception about programming. If you don’t write software, you might think that a programmer sits at a desk typing in code all day. In reality, it is very rare to find a programmer who spends all their time coding. Saying that a programmer is someone who types code into a computerContinue reading “Why Programmers Should Learn to Touch Type”
Your Web Proxy is Killing Productivity
Are you using a web proxy to filter websites and monitor your employees Internet usage? Maybe it is time you asked yourself why you are doing that! Most people claim that a proxy stops people from accessing inappropriate websites or that it stops Internet usage from killing productivity – but I can guarantee you thatContinue reading “Your Web Proxy is Killing Productivity”