Why manage: culture, mentorship, and impact

186: Becoming a Manager

Intro topic: plastic welding kits

News/Links:

• Parse.bot, turn any website into an API
  • https://www.parse.bot/
• Gemini 3
  • https://blog.google/products/gemini/gemini-3/
• Depth Anything 3
  • https://github.com/ByteDance-Seed/Depth-Anything-3
• Wan 2.2 (run on runpod)
  • https://www.runpod.io/
    
    

Book of the Show

• Patrick
  • The Thinking Game (DeepMind documentary)
    • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d95J8yzvjbQ
• Jason
  • Plato: The Republic
    • https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1497
      
      

Patreon Plug https://www.patreon.com/programmingthrowdown?ty=h

Tool of the Show

• Patrick
  • Core Keeper
    • Pc/Switch/Xbox/Playstation 
• Jason
  • Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic
    • PC

Topic: Becoming a Manager

• What is a Manager
  • Opportunity
  • Results + Retention
  • Sizing
    • Hiring
      • Philosophy
      • Interviews
    • Downsizing
• How to Manage
  • Company Goals / OKRs
    • Breaking down & claiming company goals.
    • Balancing inspirational & practical goals
  • Coaching
    • One-on-ones
    • Career planning
  • Performance 
    • Motivation
    • Performance Management Review
    • Compensation
• Choosing to become a manager
  • Balancing personal and company incentives
  • Why Manage
    • Mentorship
    • Build relationships
  • Why to not manage
    • Less time for your original joy (coding)
    • Less technical influence
    • More uncertainty and less closure
  • How to transition back to Engineer
    • Take the time/energy to get ramped up
    • Act as an advisor to your manager