I have held a diverse set of full-time roles within the tech industry. These roles have ranged from a jack-of-all-trades at a 2-person product company to a lead developer for some of the best marketing sites in the world.
While I think this diverse experience is very valuable, it’s sometimes hard to talk about effectively, especially in the span of a 30-minute interview when the interview questions are geared towards specialists. As such, I wanted think through explicitly what I think makes me stand out from other engineers. I came up with this list:
Differences that I’d argue are good
- I am skilled at noticing.
I usually approach projects with a high-level prespective. Instead of focusing on only the details in front of me, I tend to analyze the whole situation. I am skilled at noticing things that many engineers miss and often act on these areas of opportunity whether that is for a product, a team, or individuals. - I don’t let myself be bound by my role.
Often, the areas of opportunity that I notice are outside of my job description but I act on them for the good of the company and team when appropriate. I love working closely with product managers, designers, and project managers. - I believe that details matter.
One small improvement to a function, PR, process, or a kind word said to a teammate may not matter in isolation. But if I’m able to continuously make small improvements (while still getting the big goals accomplished) they compound to things that are truly great, even if the resulting “why” it’s great is hard to put into words. - I want lots of responsibility.
I want responsibility for my area, both the good and bad. I believe in small teams, high ownership, and high trust. I love leading small teams. - I crave time free from all other responsibilities.
I come up with my most valuable ideas when I have time to think about areas outside of my directives. I try to build margin into my workload so that I can do this. - I care.
I care deeply about things that matter and minimize my time spent on other things. I do my very best to improve my area, first and foremost for customers and my team. I always pay attention to feedback (often doing my own product support). I feel compelled to work hard and get things done. - I have a diverse work history.
I’ve worked at a 2-person company, an 18,000 person company, and companies in-between. I’ve helped startups find product-market fit, established products redefine themselves, and made top-of-class, cutting-edge web experiences. - I am well read.
I regularly read not only about software engineering topics but also graphics programming, video game history and techniques, art, managing people well, politics, and religion. I continuously add to repositories of inspirational material for visual projects. - I am very efficient.
I am one of the most efficient people you’ll meet. I minimize meetings, create exceptional documentation, unblock team processes, and am clear and direct when communicating with others. I help those around me do the same. - I am skilled at getting the best out of others.
I have extensive mentorship experience both inside and outside of my occupation. I pride myself on how often I’m able to set up my teammates for doing their best work by giving them opportunities to grow and helping them accomplish their goals.
In summary, my best attribute is helping teams run better. When I am part of a team, I help the whole team produce higher-quality work more quickly. The more leadership I am given, the more I am able to help. Secondarily, my mix of product, design, project management, and engineering expertise affords me the ability to work across a diverse set of roles and be a helpful addition to almost any team.
Areas of weakness
- I’m a swiss-army knife.
With experience spanning product, design, front-end, full-stack, and team leadership, people may expect that I am exceptional at all of them. While I think I am very good at each of these areas, for any one of these areas I can point to a domain purist who is better at it than me. My primary value isn’t in any one of these areas. It’s the rare ability to operate at a very high level across all of them. - Sometimes I spend too much time on nitpicks.
Focusing on the most important things and focusing on useless things is a spectrum, not binary. While I think I usually focus on the right things, sometimes my sense of what is important is blurred by my personal preferences.
Do I sound like someone you’d like to work with?
Let me know! I love chatting with people.