Shows / Developer Tea
Developer Tea
Developer Tea exists to help driven developers connect to their ultimate purpose and excel at their work so that they can positively impact the people they influence. With over 17 million downloads to date, Developer Tea is a short podcast hosted by Jonathan Cutrell, engineering leader with over 15 years of industry experience. We hope you'll take the topics from this podcast and continue the conversation, either online or in person with your peers. Email: developertea@gmail.com
Episodes
- Developer Tea
Great Reviews and Terrible Tacos - Sharpening Substitute Questions with Counterfactuals
This episode delves into the use of substitute questions—simpler queries we use to answer more complex ones—and the crucial concept of cohesion between these…
- Developer Tea
Why Maintenance Matters Now - Construal Level Theory, Marshmallows, and Hyperbolic Discounting
This episode explores why maintenance tasks, despite their fundamental importance, are often neglected or deprioritised in our daily lives and professional…
- Developer Tea
Follow This Principle - Establish Your Baselines
This episode introduces a profound yet simple principle: knowing your baselines. This concept is crucial for effectively detecting and measuring change in your…
- Developer Tea
Advice on Advice - Taking Everything with a Grain of Salt
This episode explores the complex landscape of receiving advice in your career, particularly during uncertain times. It offers insights on how to critically…
- Developer Tea
Career Advice for Surviving AI Outsourcing
This episode addresses the fear surrounding industry changes, such as AI and potential outsourcing, and offers actionable advice for engineers, managers, and…
- Developer Tea
Take Back Your Time - Volatility, Pliability, and Agency and Your Obligations.mp3
This episode provides tactical ways to own your time, reduce meeting load and obligations, and regain agency, especially when feeling burnt out. You'll learn…
- Developer Tea
Iteration or Target State Planning
This episode explores the dichotomy between iterative planning and target state planning in software development, discussing the benefits and drawbacks of each…
- Developer Tea
Three Principles of Preparedness - Mitigate Risks and Capitalize On Opportunities
This episode delves into practical principles for navigating the unexpected in your life and career. Rather than attempting to predict specific events, the…
- Developer Tea
Did I Get That Right? - A High Leverage Habit that Requires Virtually Zero Skill
This episode introduces a simple yet highly effective communication habit that can be adopted by anyone to significantly reduce the risk of misunderstandings…
- Developer Tea
Meta Models - Logarithmic Returns
This episode introduces a valuable meta-tool for understanding the generic shapes of models, focusing specifically on the concept of logarithmic relationships…
- Developer Tea
Dimensional Reframing - Think Along a New Axis
This episode introduces the concept of dimensional reframing as a tool to gain new perspectives on problems and facilitate decision-making by considering a new…
- Developer Tea
Chesterton's Fence - Why You Should Think Twice Before Rewriting That Project
This episode explores the concept of Chesterton's fence, a principle that advises against removing or altering something without first understanding its…
- Developer Tea
Reframing Areas of Growth to Your Manager
This episode discusses how to reframe areas of growth identified in performance reviews with your manager, turning potential weaknesses into strategic…
- Developer Tea
Owning and Requesting Forward-Framed Feedback
This episode provides a tactical question to elicit useful feedback by taking responsibility for seeking it out and framing the request in a way that…
- Developer Tea
Work Modes Using Autonomy and Definition Clarity Quadrant - Manager Frameworks and Tools Series
This episode introduces a simple quadrant tool to visualise different working modes that a team or individual task might be in, based on levels of autonomy and…
- Developer Tea
Manager Frameworks and Models - Product Lifecycle Governance
This episode introduces product lifecycle governance, offering practical techniques for engineering managers to tackle challenges like backlog prioritisation…
- Developer Tea
Philosophical Frameworks that Inform Your Decisions (Without You Even Knowing It)
This episode explores philosophical frameworks—ontology, teleology, and dynamism—to inform decision-making in uncertain situations, providing practical advice…
- Developer Tea
How Can You Prepare for High-Impact Unknown Events?
This episode includes practical techniques to prepare for the unexpected by identifying vulnerabilities and building resilience, using the "curse question" and…
- Developer Tea
Misconceptions about Exceptions and Cultural Shifts - Invisible Inertia
In this episode, we discuss how invisible inertia can cause us to misinterpret our reality in work scenarios. • Discover why common misconceptions about…
- Developer Tea
Action Orientation and Making Faster Decisions
Time-crunched and data-scarce? Learn how the RPD model can leverage expertise and intuition to speed up decision-making, and how the 'Rubicon' moment can make…
- Developer Tea
Match your Action to Intention - Pairing Five Whats with Five Whys
Use "What" to get more specific. Align actions with intentions for better time management. • Stop wasting time on autopilot. Discover the power of the Five…
- Developer Tea
Upgrade Your Resolutions
In today's episode, we're focusing on taking your resolutions and making them matter. I will give you two challenges in this episode to improve the quality and…
- Developer Tea
Ten Years of Developer Tea
Today, we celebrate 10 years of Developer Tea. I wouldn't be doing this podcast without you listening. Especially if you have been listening for many years…
- Developer Tea
Better Low-Information Estimates - Putting the "Scientific" in SWAG
How can you create better scientific wild a** guesses when the work is not well defined? We discuss a few strategies in this episode. We also talk a bit about…
- Developer Tea
Agency - How The On Over In Model Can Help You Grow Your Career
Are you operating in the world, or are you working on a problem? This shift in agency can make all the difference in your career. 🙏 Today's Episode is Brought…
- Developer Tea
Using ChatGPT for Career Experience Simulations - LLMs and Direct Simulations for Faster Career Experience Gains
Can you use ChatGPT to become a better engineer? I'm not just talking about learning a language or fixing a bug with ChatGPT providing advice... I'm talking…
- Developer Tea
Coaching Yourself: Career Coaching Personas for Everyday Engineers, Part Three - Shoulder Socrates
In today's episode we discuss the concept of adopting self-coaching personas, and discuss the third persona, "Shoulder Socrates." 🙏 Today's Episode is Brought…
- Developer Tea
Coaching Yourself: Career Coaching Personas for Everyday Engineers, Part Two - The Overoptimizer
In today's episode we discuss the concept of adopting self-coaching personas, and discuss the second persona, the over-optimizer. 🙏 Today's Episode is Brought…
- Developer Tea
Coaching Yourself: Career Coaching Personas for Everyday Engineers, Part One - The Available Manager
In today's episode we discuss the concept of adopting self-coaching personas, and discuss a critical first persona to start with. 🙏 Today's Episode is Brought…
- Developer Tea
The Highest Leverage Work You Do - Footing the Ladder
High-leverage work often comes in the simplest form of helping another person with their efforts. 📮 Ask a Question If you enjoyed this episode and would like…
- Developer Tea
Prioritization is the Ultimate Skill
Learn to prioritize, and everything else falls into place. This is clarity through perspective and purpose. 📮 Ask a Question If you enjoyed this episode and…
- Developer Tea
Career Growth Comes From Finding Low Hanging Fruit in the Gaps
Your career growth will be directly correlated to your ability to solve critical unsolved problems in the gaps of your organization's problems. Focus on…
- Developer Tea
How Culture Might Eat Your Values For Breakfast
In this episode we discuss the delineation between culture and values. What you allow is just as important as what you value. 🙏 Today's Episode is Brought To…
- Developer Tea
The Tricky Parts of Merit Cycles
The blunt reality: Merit cycles are not how you build your earning power or career. They are a function of company culture and HR, and generally speaking are…
- Developer Tea
Limiting Factors - The Hidden Focus That Matters the Most
In today's episode we discuss focus, again. This time, through the lens of a few mental models that help us decide what is actually the right thing to focus…
- Developer Tea
Improve Your Chances In Your Engineering Job Search Using the Scientific Method with Brian Pulliam
I'm joined today by Brian Pulliam. I've personally engaged Brian as a career coach. In this discussion we'll talk a bit about coaching, and about how you can…
- Developer Tea
Improve Your Chances In Your Engineering Job Search Using the Scientific Method with Brian Pulliam
I'm joined today by Brian Pulliam. I've personally engaged Brian as a career coach. In this discussion we'll talk a bit about coaching, and about how you can…
- Developer Tea
Focus On Outcomes By Resetting Your Base
In this episode we talk about the concept of "resetting your base" - moving in a direction you don't necessarily want to go in order to achieve better outcomes…
- Developer Tea
Portraying Confidence in the Face of the Unknown
In today's episode we discuss how you might build your confidence without being disingenuous. This isn't a lesson in psychology or tricks - it's about building…
- Developer Tea
Now, Next, Later, Never - A Simple Daily Framework for Managing Information and Prioritization
In today's episode, we'll discuss an absolutely simple structure for prioritization and information flow in your daily work. The flow relies on a basic text…
- Developer Tea
Bias to Action As A Skill
You have seen "bias to action" on job requirements, but what does this really mean? Is it something that can be learned? Make sure you know the difference…
- Developer Tea
Managing Using Core Indicators of Team Outcomes
In this episode, we use the Start / Stop / Continue framework in a new way. As leaders, we should always know what outcome indicators a given discussion is…
- Developer Tea
Inverted Thinking As a Strategy To Combat Bias
In today's episode, we talk about inversion and inverted thinking. This is a mental model inspired by considering the "negative space" instead of the space…
- Developer Tea
Talking To Yourself for Better One-On-Ones
In today's episode we discuss a preparation step for your next one-on-one. Don't just wing it - do your homework... and talk to yourself a little bit. 📮 Ask a…
- Developer Tea
Interview Prep: Two Counterintuitive Tips
In today's episode we'll discuss some counterintuitive advice for your interviews. This advice applies in interview settings, but also applies in 1-1 meetings…
- Developer Tea
The Top Resumé Mistake I See, Plus the Best Resumé Advice I've Ever Received
After today's episode, your resumé is going to get better! In this episode I will share the biggest mistake and the best advice I've ever received about…
- Developer Tea
Prioritization Using Critical Path Thinking
In today's episode, we talk about the counterintuitive process of prioritizing based on critical path. This is not a novel concept that I've invented, but…
- Developer Tea
Cultural Antidotes - Clarity Isn't Just Honesty
The most common mistake for any manager is to fail to clarify. This often happens because we mistake our average communications for having perfect clarity…
- Developer Tea
Demystifying Culture and Values
What does your culture have to do with your values? In this episode we open up the discussion about a model of thinking for culture and values to understand…
- Developer Tea
Principles of Work - Shorten Your Feedback Loops
Your feedback loops should be short enough that the cost of making a mistake is low enough that the value of the learning in the feedback loop exceeds the…
- Developer Tea
Principles of Work - Be Your Own Advocate
In this episode we discuss the importance of being your own advocate, and why this is likely the most rational position to hold. The takeaway: At any point…
- Developer Tea
Practical Application of Information Theory
In this episode we discuss a practical application of information theory. Information theory is similar to the classic theory of communication, but distinct in…
- Developer Tea
Revisiting Core Working Principles - Hyperfixation on Measurements and Communication Degradation
In today's episode we talk about working principles again. Specifically, we're looking at a problem with measurement fixation, as well as the natural curve of…
- Developer Tea
Revisiting Core Working Principles - Clarity as a Precursor to Focus and Strategy for Possibilities
In this episode we are revisiting some of my own personal core principles of working. I'm sharing these with you for you to do whatever you want with them, so…
- Developer Tea
Two Principle Categories To Judge Productivity Advice
In today's episode we talk about principles of productivity. Most of the advice you receive will fit in the two categories we discuss in this episode. Once you…
- Developer Tea
Cost of Delay Curves and Classes of Service
In today's episode we discuss the concept of "cost of delay", and explore the fact that cost of delay does not necessarily follow a linear path. When cost of…
- Developer Tea
Taking Personal Accountability for Systematic Failures
"What actions can I take to get better from here?" This seems like a simple concept, but in practice we often are more interested in protecting our ego. In…
- Developer Tea
Stat Series: What Statistical Measure Are You Overusing? (And What to Do About It), Part Two
In this episode we continue our discussion about the most overused statistical measurement. We'll talk about a few more counterintuitive properties of the…
- Developer Tea
Stat Series: What Statistical Measure Are You Overusing? (And What to Do About It), Part One
On average, you're probably overusing this specific type of statistic. In today's episode, we discuss the king of all misleading numbers: averages! There's so…
- Developer Tea
Treat Your Time as A Product You Own
Today we explore the idea of treating your time as a product. Start with a wishlist: what do you wish was true about your week? What are your "if-only"…