206
The negative view is that they want you to be so addicted to creating things, that you work 80 hours a week for them without regard to your health and well-being.
A positive view is that they want to see code samples and don’t know how to just ask for some
Employers want to see passion and drive. Some companies call those things leadership qualities.
...
198
I think the crux of the situation is:
There is no template even though my boss asked her to provide one.
Next time she stops by, beat her to the punch and insist that you need the template to do your job before she even asks for the next iteration of request. When she derails the conversation with specifics of what she wants wholeheartedly agree that ...
194
A business would not hesitate to terminate you if it was important for the business success. You should not hesitate to terminate the business if it's important for your success.
The company is not family.
150
Unfortunately maintenance is the rule when working in IT, very rarely are there new projects, and people get reassigned around projects regularly. And while the quality of the code you will have to maintain in your professional life will vary widely, they will never smell the same as a fresh 2-6 month old project.
However, there are things you can do to ...
115
As other answers have already touched upon this is a route towards being able to provide code samples that a free of any restrictions upon the candidate (no NDAs or anything to worry about).
By far the larger factor however is that companies expect it simply because it's very often the case. Those who go on to become professional software developers often ...
95
what do you think I should do?
Nothing. As long as you are not using company time and resource to make your side project, and you don't have a clause in your employment agreement which prohibits you from engaging in any sort of technical or business activities which is directly or indirectly have a conflict of interest with the current organization, your ...
92
Speaking as a R&D SW engineer who also does SW recruiting and interviewing (and who asks exactly that question)...
SW often involves absurd levels of complexity and training. I want to hire someone who is going to be productive for years or decades. If SW is just a stepping stone to get inside the company and then leave for sales (a RL example) then ...
78
Does your company have a clear/clean desk policy? i.e. no sensitive documents to be left on the desk/"out" when the employee is away (usually overnight, but it depends on the company). Put your notebook in the desk drawer and lock it.
Years ago I had a similar problem where an office junior would take our ideas to a senior manager who would burst into the ...
72
When she talks to me my anxiety goes through the roof. I have to use
controlled breathing while imagining murdering her in a variety of
ways. This is bad.
You should be discussing this part with a mental health professional.
They can advise strategies and/or medication to help you cope with your anxiety, since you find it so severe.
What do I do ...
57
If you’re excited about the new offer, you should take it.
Knowing that you’re leaving your current role, there are some things you can do to leave on the best terms as possible:
1. Give your manager as much notice as possible, don’t just wait for the “two weeks notice” deadline. Once you know you’re leaving, give your manager the opportunity to keep the ...
56
Is helping this person complete her studies part of your job description? I doubt it. You have to learn how to say no, she's using you as a very strong safety net and that's not going to help her after her studies.
In the end, this is impacting your work as you're losing time to work on someone else's problems that are not work related. If she can't do the ...
49
Yes it is reasonable to tell your manager you are not enjoying your work and to ask for something fun.
It is also reasonable for that manager to ask you to stick it out. There is a job that needs to be done and the job can't be all fun all the time.
A good manager will realize that they are burning your usefulness and willingness to work for them and will ...
42
I'm going to re-interpret this question a tiny bit into:
Why is it 'expected' that software developers do continuing education in their spare time?
So, when I re-frame it that way, that makes a whole lot more sense. Most professionals are required to do continuing education. Doctors are an excellent example of this, but they aren't the only ones. Lawyers ...
40
Struggling to finish project, how to tell coworker?
At this point you need to be open and honest about the status of the project. Honesty and transparency are usually your best ally when it comes to a project's status. ( Just tell the co-worker as soon as possible )
You have made a mistake in not disclosing the status of the project, but one that I think ...
40
Stop worrying
You were assigned to work on internal project XX in part because you had nothing better to do.
You are now assigned to a client using the same technology stack.
It sounds to me like project XX was a successful training project.
That's not fake and it's not bad news for you.
37
Make your notes publicly available (within your organization or team).
Securing your notebook will be an easier option, but as you've asked for other approaches you might consider this one.
This will be varyingly convenient depending on how your workplace operates, but if you have something like a Sharepoint site or internal blogging service you can keep ...
35
Oh, I see it.
The fact that you have no contract with this other party is the reason why things are lingering.
You're not communicating the value of your efforts to your client effectively and are basically allowing the client to control how you run your business.
A written contract says, "For a certain valuable consideration that the client agrees to ...
33
This is a fine question! Parkinson's bike shed isn't as notorious in the US as it is in the UK, so here it's even harder to use "bikeshedding" as a short keyword to capture peoples' attention.
If you're running a meeting yourself, you can ask someone to keep a written list of "items requiring attention." When the metaphorical bike shed comes up for ...
33
How do I approach my coworker about this?
If you, with your knowledge and experience in the project, believe it is not possible to finish it on time you should have a follow-up meeting ASAP, to make sure you will not affect in a negative way your colleague's possible meeting, and with that your professional reputation. Be clear and honest with her; the Beta ...
32
Your question contains the answer to what you should do. You say
In order to gain some practical technical experience, I have started off building a software from scratch whose excellent open source option already exists.
So put that in your resume! So later when you say
But, now when I think of putting my work in my resume, I guess the interviewer ...
32
Instead of presenting suggestions, you can ask questions and start discussions. Where possible, treat it as something newly possible -- it's not that the people who set up the current system were bad or incompetent, but now there are new opportunities:
"I see that the new version of (some tool or platform we use) would allow us to do X. That sounds useful;...
27
At this point you have nothing to connect your side project with your manager's behaviour other than your feelings. You should not assume they are connected. And your not communicating with him is not helping.
Go and talk to your boss, and ask him if he is OK with your side project. If he is, then you are good to continue. If not then you can find out if ...
27
My question: would it be reasonable to ask my manager to put me on another project because I really dislike the work I need to do now and how do I tell this?
No it would not be reasonable. Part of being a programmer is maintaining existing programs whether its adding/removing features or fixing errors. You were lucky to have worked on some projects that ...
21
There are many possible reasons your co-worker may have for suggesting that you avoid telling your boss you have a project outside work. To be certain of why this specific co-worker said what he/she said, you need to ask him/her.
It is possible this co-worker said what was said for personal reasons. For example, he/she is frustrated that he/she doesn't get ...
20
My experience has been that finding someone to blame in this sort of situation is rarely a productive way to address the problem. A really big issue like this is usually more than 1 person, in fact it's typically more than even the 2 people who have miscommunicated. In addition, picking sides usually ends in a battle, rather than a solution - so I'd try at ...
17
Yes, you certainly should have talked about money before doing a lot of work. But that's water under the bridge.
I'd simply contact whoever it is you've been talking to sand say, "Hey, we've made good progress, it's about time we talk about money."
If they say they weren't planning to pay you and they thought you were just doing this for fun, you can just ...
16
Reasonable people will expect you to be a nuisance; new people are an investment.
Meet with your manager (or team lead, or whatever level assigns work and knows the systems) to get an outline of what you need to know. Break it down into a list during the meeting, and get a contact for each item on the list (the manager should balance competence and workload/...
16
While I don't think HLGEM's answer is incorrect, I think that "playing politics" requires a bit more guidance.
Executive Summary
Here is a three-step process to minimize the damage to your own career.
Push to make the project succeed
Suggest solutions rather than harp on problems
Turn the failure in to a selling point
Push to make the project ...
16
What you signed up for
I am not a lawyer, nor have I seen your contract, but most of them have clause along the lines of 'and other tasks as required', which means that contractually you have agreed to do other work for him if required.
Progression
Now that the disclaimer is out of the way let's get to the real stuff.
It's a fact of life that sometimes ...
16
How to ask my manager for more information about a new project before I commit to relocating for it?
I'd go with something like this:
Hi Manager
I'd like to hear more about the project before I commit to relocating.
Whatever details you are able to make available will help me make my
decision.
Thanks
Nandhini
Only top voted, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible
