It’s been a mixed week back at work with some great feedback on how I’ve been leading a team of out of hours support engineers but also some new situations to deal with as a line manager.
To combat feeling disconnected from the consultancy company I work for I’ve embraced some new networking opportunities. Focusing on clients is really important but there must be balance. On top of community of practice discussions and regular showcase events, the donut app on slack is a great way to stay in touch and stay fresh!
Planning has started for some more coaching sessions; I’m excited to review these with an unexpected new collaborator and develop them more in the coming weeks.
One major highlight has been rediscovering a coding joy: a simple review session with some users of a common code library I’ve been working with brought a meaningful refactor. This turned an addition for use by a single app into a helpful update for everyone to use, reducing the specialist knowledge needed to get the same bunch of improvements. It was a great reminder of how a small change now can save hours of developer time in the future and how developer experience is an important part of high performing teams.
All work and no play would have made for a very dull Tess indeed so it was good to balance all the work with feeling rooted at home, reading letters from friends, enjoying walks and bird watching with new binoculars. Rainy days also inspire inside exercise and reading pulp novels hygge style. To keep this going, I absolutely reserve the right to keep the fairy lights up in the house until February!