The Manager's Guide – #87
Weekly Hand-Picked Collection Edition
"The chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I actually control."- Epictetus, Discourses, 2.5.4–5
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Your company needs Junior devs
🎓 “Juniors create teaching cultures” — Companies focusing only on senior developers miss out on the force-multiplier effect of coaching and knowledge sharing
🧠 “Teaching deepens senior knowledge” — The “Protégé effect” shows that teaching juniors actually helps senior developers deepen their own understanding and question assumptions
🔄 “Innovation through diversity” — Junior developers, coming from varied backgrounds, often bring fresh perspectives and challenge established thinking patterns — examples include Twitter (Jack Dorsey) and Firefox (Blake Ross)
🛡️ “Psychological safety drives learning” — Teams that normalize coaching and teaching create environments where people feel safe to admit mistakes and experiment with new ideas
🏢 “Knowledge creation vs. metrics” — Western companies often focus too much on immediate outputs (KPIs, OKRs) rather than creating environments that foster knowledge sharing and innovation
🔬 “Team dynamics like research labs” — High-performing teams mirror academic research environments, balancing experienced mentors with fresh perspectives from newcomers
⚠️ “Common misconception” — The belief that AI will replace junior developers misunderstands their true value, which lies in fostering teaching, learning, and innovation rather than just coding output
The Antidote to “Manager Mode” is Actual Management
🎯 “Management isn't the problem” — The real issue is the absence of proper management, often due to leaders' fear of being labeled micromanagers
📊 “Theory X vs. Y misconception” — McGregor's Theory Y principles have been oversimplified to mean “hire and step back,” leading to leadership abdication
🔍 “Real management defined” — Effective management means actively determining who does what, setting quality standards, regular check-ins, and course correction when needed
⚖️ “Balance is key” — While founders need deep involvement in details at certain stages, this shouldn't become an excuse for permanent micromanagement
❌ “Psychological safety misunderstood” — The concept has been incorrectly interpreted as “avoid hurting feelings” rather than its true meaning of “safe to speak up with bad news”
🎭 “Professional fakers warning” — The “hire good people and step back” approach can lead to hiring skilled presenters who may not deliver actual results
🚀 “Sustainable leadership” — The goal is finding the sweet spot between necessary oversight and avoiding leader burnout
Willingness to look stupid
🧠 Being willing to look stupid is essential for deeper learning and faster growth. It removes mental barriers and allows exploration of unconventional ideas.
🎯 Encountering regular skepticism from others about your approaches is often a sign you're pushing boundaries and thinking independently
💡 The highest-value solutions often come from pursuing ideas others dismiss as stupid – there's less competition and lower effort needed compared to trendy areas
🏢 Embracing “stupid” questions and approaches in professional settings leads to catching critical mistakes others miss through social pressure
🩺 Standing firm on your knowledge despite condescension from authority figures can be life-saving, especially in medical situations
🎮 In competitive environments, those who make excuses to avoid looking stupid stagnate, while those who acknowledge mistakes excel rapidly
🚫 Looking stupid acts as an excellent filter – it quickly reveals incompatible relationships and toxic work environments
⚖️ While some situations reward appearing competent over being competent, it's better to avoid such environments entirely
The Tyrant, The Pushover, and the Peter Principle.
🎯 Vulnerability in leadership isn't about being nice or mean – it's about having the courage to be honest and face difficult truths
💪 Strong management requires addressing underperformance directly, as avoiding these conversations ultimately damages team morale and visibility
🤝 Psychological safety comes from fairness and honesty, not from being universally nice or avoiding confrontation
⚡️ Leaders who avoid vulnerability typically become either tyrants (ruling through fear) or pushovers (avoiding all conflict)
🌟 Even positive feedback requires vulnerability – many managers avoid giving specific, meaningful praise due to discomfort with emotional honesty
📊 Protecting underperforming team members at higher levels forces everyone below them to “pay the tuition” of their learning curve
🎭 Most conflict avoidance in management stems from fear of vulnerability, not from genuine kindness or empathy
🔄 True leadership means having the courage to reverse decisions that aren't working, even when it's uncomfortable
The most important part of Team Topologies is also the one most people overlook
🎯 Clear value flow mapping is essential – focus on specific use cases rather than attempting to map entire organizations
💡 Team Topologies works best as a pattern language for improving value delivery, not as a rigid organizational mapping tool
🔄 Organizations should constantly evolve their team structures based on changing needs and value streams
⚖️ Large organizations need multiple focused maps for different value flows instead of one complex diagram
🤝 Team collaboration should be time-bound and purpose-specific, shifting interaction modes as needs change
🏗️ Platforms should provide services “upward” for others to consume, creating clear boundaries and self-service capabilities
📍 Always be explicit about the use case being mapped – it provides context and helps identify related scenarios
🔍 Focus on how teams deliver value rather than reporting hierarchies to create more effective organizations
Heartbeats: keeping strategies alive
🎯 Strategies need continuous reinforcement through regular “heartbeats” – not just one-time presentations
💫 A strategy heartbeat should include progress updates, impact metrics, staffing changes, and forward-looking plans
📊 Use data and concrete examples to show how the strategy is being implemented and making a difference
🔄 Strategy documents should evolve based on new learnings and market changes – they're living documents, not static plans
📣 Multi-channel communication is crucial – combine written updates, videos, and live presentations to reach more people
🎬 Show real evidence of strategy implementation to maintain engagement and prove it's not just an academic exercise
⏰ Regular intervals (quarterly/biannual) help maintain momentum and accountability
🎯 Without consistent reinforcement, even the best strategies risk being forgotten or ignored in daily decision-making
That’s all for this week’s edition
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See y’all next week 👋