Candost's Blog

Candost's Blog

Candost

I used to think that reading would make me wise. One day, ten pages before finishing a book, I realized that I had read that same book before. At that point, my perspective on reading and, therefore, my life had changed. Now, I don’t care how many books I read; I take many notes, connect dots, and share what I’ve found on my blog and newsletter. I’m interested in many things at the same time (I’m a multipotentialite). On this blog, you’ll find me talking to about multiple aspects of life like leadership, software engineering, philosophy, psychology, software architecture & design, urban & industrial design, exercising, finance, Formula1 Racing, eating healthy, and many more. I’m a software engineering manager; that’s my current job. At home, I’m a writer and an avid reader. I rarely watch TV, movies or TV series. I don’t have any social media account (except Mastodon where I have automated posting of my new articles). Hence, I often miss the popular culture references in conversations. That’s alright. I don’t have FOMO; I embrace JOMO. I rarely read fictional books.

Latest Posts

Giving any information to the team as a manager is like acting in a theater. As leaders, our tone, facial expressions, and mimics set the audience’s feelings. We build stories to navigate people through the mist and bring them into the...
I cried five days ago. I cried for the Ukrainians. The people who are dealing with the Putin regime. The people whose country is invaded. I cried four days ago. I happily cried for the Ukrainian refugees and how Western countries offer...
When I think about managers I've worked with, the best ones were the ones who say, "I don't know" or "I was wrong." They knew their weaknesses in the team or, in general, in the company. Instead of hiding them, they embraced them and...
Hey friend, In the last Mektup, I mentioned the Definition of Done when discussing reliability. Now, I want to dig deeper into it and explore why you and your team need one. If you hear someone says, "The work is done," but they need to...
If you ask me what my advice would be to mid-level software engineers these days, it would be to stay where you are if you don’t have a stressful problem and if you’re learning. Changing the company feels exciting (new adventures, new...
Hey friend, Today, I want to talk to you about one thing that made a big difference in my career and life. People gave me positive feedback many times, and it became one of my superpowers: I'm a reliable person. I'm not here to brag or...
Life is a war—a long war between happiness and others. In every battle of this war, we expect fairness—be happy as much as others and be treated as equals. From childhood, I was taught that people who are morally good and lawful will...
Hey friend, When I looked around me, I realized that many growing engineers have a few things in common, but we rarely talk about them. Engineers who want to grow still focus on many technical skills, which is correct. As you get these...
Many leaders have problems with empathy, especially managers with software engineering backgrounds. Before transitioning into people management, they were usually senior engineers: the knowledgeable ones who got used to providing...
Hey friend, In the last Mektup, I talked about which skills you should learn in the new year. Improving your skills and learning new ones help you take a step forward. However, you can't do these things alone. Your manager has to support...
The Software Engineering profession is one of the most misunderstood disciplines. Many folks consider it as engineering; some tell it's like painting—an art, a few think it as a creative journey full of flaws. While engineering and...
Hey friend, Here comes the 21st letter—the last letter of 2021. (The matching numbers are pure coincidence, I didn't plan this at all 😄.) The new year is upon us, and it's time to think about the next year. Before deciding on New Year's...
How Strongly I Recommend It: 5/10 How Likely I Will Gift It: 1/10 Make Time is written by the bestselling authors Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky. We know the authors from another book, Sprint: Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just...
Recognizing the rock stars (excellent performance/gradual growth trajectory) is tricky because leaders often misunderstand these people and want to reward their performance. These leaders err in reward and give promotions while the...
People who grew quickly but have struggled in their position perform badly because of a couple of reasons: they might be in the wrong role. An engineer getting a promotion to manager because they were excellent is an example. Find the...
Search Random