Tech

One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned in tech is boundaries. When to set them, how to enforce them, and (occasionally) when to cross them. Learning this early in my career made it easier to apply later – like now, running my own business. If I don’t get paid when I don’t work, then I don’t work when I don’t get paid. Simple. But this isn’t just on my mind because I’m chasing overdue invoices (though, you know, that too). It started when I saw posts and articles about how 996 culture is gaining traction among startups and founders, especially in Silicon Valley. You know, the “work 9am to 9pm, 6 days a week” grind. And this is despite most people knowing it’s unhealthy. Despite the constant complaints on social about burnout and not having a life outside work. ...

Don’t trust the salesperson. Trust the user reviews. When billionaires share their “secrets to success,” they’re selling to people who’ll never have their starting advantages. When AI executives tell everyone to “learn to code,” they’re ignoring billions without basic internet access. When tech companies promise their products will make us smarter, research often suggests the opposite may be true. Yes, innovation matters. Ford’s customers might have asked for faster horses instead of cars. But here’s the difference: when someone’s paycheck depends entirely on selling you something, when their company’s survival hinges on that sale, they’re not solving your problem, they’re solving theirs. ...

Intro I posted over on LinkedIn about an interesting comparison between Lovable and Bolt.new which I did. I had this idea for my next Flutter project, but after being hit by the 5th LinkedIn post about Lovable in as many minutes, I had this thought. 😂😂😂 No, actually, the thought was more along the lines of ...

In some of my previous posts I’ve talked about playing around with “vibe coding” tools, more specifically the more hands-on ones like Cursor and Windsurf where I can still jump in if needed. Every time I have an idea for a silly or stupid app just for myself, I tend to gravitate towards these tools, not because I can’t be arsed to do it myself, but because I’m genuinely curious about how well these perform and how much they improve over time. ...

The Gell-Mann Amnesia Effect It describes how someone reads an article in their area of expertise, finds it full of errors and oversimplifications, but then turns the page and takes the next article, on a subject they know nothing about, at face value. I only learned this term recently, although I’ve always kinda knew and understood the concept. And with all the content LinkedIn and YouTube have been force feeding me, I’ve been thinking about how this idea extends beyond just “reading the news” to our skills and expertise. ...

Introduction I keep saying my next post won’t be about AI, and then inevitably, I post something about AI. It’s hard to ignore, it’s the big bubble we are dealing with, and there is so much hype that needs to be ignored and filtered so we can get to the actually good stuff… I’ve been playing around with various tools over the last 3 or 4 months, and I think I’ve settled into what I find to be most useful for me. And while the topic says no-one asked, truth is, this actually does come up in a few discussions on other platforms and groups I’m part of, so I figured I’d love to share, but more importantly, hear what others are doing and why you agree or disagree with me. ...

The Promise vs. Reality of AI in Tech I’m genuinely excited about recent AI advancements. The tools continue improving, and we’re discovering more ways to optimize and enhance our work. I’ve personally found a good rhythm using AI to multiply my skills rather than replace or hinder them. However, I’m concerned about the industry’s direction with these improvements. Instead of creating better developers, we’re often replacing them. Rather than building amazing accessibility tools, we’re creating deep fakes and virtual companions. ...

Over a year ago a wrote a post about how I felt that, even though ChatGPT was making me more productive, I also felt it was making me lazier and dumber. Since then, I’ve been a lot more intentional about how I use AI tools, in particular generative AI tools and coding assistants. It should be a multiplier, not a replacement or crutch, which is something I see juniors and non-developers struggle with the most, but clearly we can all fall prey too. ...

Trigger warning: this is a bit of a rant. Also, it contains opinions. Specifically mine. If you are allergic to other peoples opinions, or likely to experience anger or hatefulness when hearing others opinions, this post is probably not for you. Also, if you actually are an Engineer, have a cookie. Intro I spend a large amount of time on interviews. Or I did, up until mid 2020, but whatever. Sure, it’s not as much as large corporations fielding thousands of applicants, but I’d wager more than the average startup. I’ve conducted a couple hundred interviews myself, and I’ve been interviewed a couple ten times. ...

Intro I don’t know why this has been on my mind the last few weeks, but guess that means I need to write something down… I love Bruce Lee. I don’t generally think of myself of someone who has “heroes”, but if there is one person outside my father who has greatly inspired me and changed how I think about life, it would be Bruce Lee. At first, as a little kid with silly hopes and crazy dreams, it was just all the cool fighting scenes in his movies that made want to be like him. ...