Paved With Good Intentions
I've worked at Apple and Amazon Web Services, as well as start ups here in Sydney, Australia. With nearly 20 years experience managing and growing organizations, I've learned that there's good, bad and ugly lessons to be learned -- and that the way to hell is paved with good intentions! I want to share my experiences and observations with you to help you on this journey.
Episodes
12 episodes
Getting Started with Confidence
I'm often asked, "How can I get started in software development?" My reply is always, "Find a problem you wish to solve, and then learn just enough to solve that problem." Learning by identifying and solving problems that are meaningful to the ...
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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9:20
Never Rewrite
Rapidly evolving languages, frameworks and paradigms mean that when we look back on old code we instinctively want to rewrite it -- because now we know a better way to implement it! However, rewriting code is almost always an anti-pattern that ...
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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9:35
Relentless Pursuit of Simplicity
A relentless pursuit of simplicity is the discipline to say no to an idea despite the potential it might hold, a dedication to simplicity for the end user despite the difficulty in delivering that, and the vigilance to divest non-core activitie...
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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9:53
Mental Models
Mental Models allow us to step inside the mind of the user to uncover their intent, expectations and extenuating circumstances. The key to building a great app or service that your customers will love is to understand and leverage their mental ...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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10:12
Difficult Conversations pt3: Follow Up
When you walk out of the room after a difficult conversation, as the person delivering the message there are some follow up steps that are crucial to making sure your message drives the change you seek. For the person receiving the message, how...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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10:00
Difficult Conversations pt2: In the Room
When you walk in to deliver a difficult conversation, the most important thing you can do is to separate the problem from the individual. Explaining the problem you're seeking to resolve in terms of actions and outcomes, and staying away from i...
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Season 1
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Episode 7
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18:26
Difficult Conversations pt1: Preparation
We make difficult conversations so much worse for everyone by delaying, procrastinating, and ruminating. Don't delay, but do prepare. Own the message and deliver it with conviction. This is the first of 3 episodes on difficult conversations tha...
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8:41
Social Style
Social Style is a typology framework that describes the four archetypal personalities in the workplace: driver, analytical, expressive and amiable. Learning about Social Style helped me identify weaknesses in my own leadership style and provide...
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Season 1
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Episode 5
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14:42
Agree, Build, Compare (Crucial Conversations)
Never, ever say you disagree! Instead, use the Agree, Build and Compare framework from Crucial Conversations to arrive at agreement. This technique avoids getting dug-in with a defensive posture that leaves you no where to go in the conversatio...
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Season 1
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Episode 4
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12:17
Accountability and Ownership
Structuring an organizing with teams that are assigned ownership of value-drivers (products, features, services), and individuals that are appointed as directly responsible for specific outcomes sets up the foundation for self-organization, emp...
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Season 1
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Episode 3
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19:00
Hand-Write Your Daily Plans
For the last two years I've kept a red soft-cover Moleskine notebook with me at almost all times. It's in this notebook that I invest a bunch of time every Sunday night planning out the coming week by hand. I use a page-per-day method. I find t...
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Season 1
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Episode 2
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11:31
Writing to Gain Clarity
When I worked at Amazon, I learnt the benefit of writing to a fixed document length: either 1 page or 6 pages and nothing in between -- and always as a narrative! In this episode of Paved With Good Intentions I'll talk about the benefits of thi...
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Season 1
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Episode 1
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14:00