Software, Boiled Hard

A sociotechnical non-fiction newsletter

Hi. I’m Dave. For nearly 30 years, I’ve worked as an engineer, product manager, and leader, building and changing complex adaptive systems in startups, SaaS companies, and gigantic enterprises.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it's that—while I’ve seen a lot—I haven’t seen it all.

To quote Valentine Michael Smith (a human raised by Martians confused about the illogical behavior of Earthlings) from Robert Heinlein’s 60s sci-fi masterwork, “Stranger in a Strange Land”:

“I am only an egg.”

But I’ve learned a trick or two. Many lessons have come the hard way. You don’t go three decades in any business without collecting some scars to put the wins into perspective. Can a little cynicism be healthy? I guess we’ll find out.

Hard-boiled might be a new term for some of you, so I’ll give you the dictionary definition followed by my own:

hard-boiled | ˈhärdˌboild | adjective 

1 (of an egg) boiled until the white and the yolk are solid. 
2 (of a person) tough and cynical: a hard-boiled Hollywood producer. • denoting a tough, realistic style of detective fiction set in a world permeated by corruption and deceit: a hard-boiled thriller.

We’re not discussing poultry, so I’ll expand on #2.

For me, hard-boiled means persistent, experienced, fairly fearless, and slightly skeptical of what seems to be happening on the surface. It means doing the work.

Not that one doesn’t occasionally ask oneself, “Are there easier ways to make a living?” Without a doubt, there are. But I’m in it for the challenge, as I suspect many of you are, too.

That’s hard-boiled software. That’s the theme of this newsletter. Within this frame, I’ll share my stories, theories, and tools for creating stronger product and engineering organizations, teams, and systems.