Very brilliant write up. This happens with most of us. Though we have knowledge and aspiration to do something in life, we are stopped and not heard, just because of the ego that someone else knows it better. At times we aren't given a chance to explain things that are going wrong. Just follow whatever is asked.
It's all in the one word, isn't it? RESIGNATION. People give what they have and when they see there aren't any results and feel they have nothing more to give, the one last thing they can do is throw in the towel.
People disengage when they no longer see meaning in their work. Rewarding ownership, encouraging debate, and showing real impact are the foundation of building a thriving team. Sadly, many managers miss acting on that.
I've seen managers who don't want to hold a design discussion and have meetings where people speak up. They are supposed to only care about how their sub-component works and have no insight on the bigger picture, the users or how the components would even interact with each other.
It results in an engineering disaster. Wish more people could see through this.
There are team members who show spark by taking ownership and as leaders it is our responsibility to acknowledge them and give them the freedom to execute.
This is a great article Taha Hussain! Your insights are always valuable to me. As a young leader in my career facing similar challenges, reading about your experiences is incredibly helpful. Thank you!
I want to believe workplaces and bosses like this exist, but the cynic in me thinks this is just a feel good anecdote, no leader can possibly be that insightful, driven to do the right thing the right way, making engineering matter, think long term as opposed to next quarter, really have their engineers' backs, create purpose.
Compliance vs ownership - that's hitting hard! I'm going to continue to ponder additional ways I'm seeing that show up. You're so right. You want to see some fight, some investment.
Good article. From experience I can say it is one factor. Another one is also energy spend/ reward ratio. I was once figuring out a problem which would cost company a whole project, make them paying a fine and be sued for not delivering. Across different teams people were struggling to solve it and at the end conclusion was we lost it. I spend 2 months to come up with the solution which actually saved the project. Management happy ,project saved. I asked for a raise as I didn’t get one since 2 years. They after 2 months of meetings and talks offered me like 100 bucks more and “promotion” with another responsibilities and no compensation.
It did felt like slap in the face being honest and I lost my enthusiasm for the job starting looking for another one.
Very brilliant write up. This happens with most of us. Though we have knowledge and aspiration to do something in life, we are stopped and not heard, just because of the ego that someone else knows it better. At times we aren't given a chance to explain things that are going wrong. Just follow whatever is asked.
Glad it resonated, Akash. Leaders acting out of their insecurity is neither good for the team nor the customer.
When people see that they are counted and included, then they can make an impact in the best way possible.
But when they ntoice that their thoughts re not considered, they become demotivated and uninspired.
And that''s the quickest way to lose such people. Good on you that you decided to give an ear to your people and let them shine their light.
Precisely. In theory, I knew that I needed to do that. But in reality, it’s easy to miss this without self-reflection.
Sometimes, there needs to be turning point, so can understand the situation better.
Loved the write up. This article resonates so much with me.
It's all in the one word, isn't it? RESIGNATION. People give what they have and when they see there aren't any results and feel they have nothing more to give, the one last thing they can do is throw in the towel.
People disengage when they no longer see meaning in their work. Rewarding ownership, encouraging debate, and showing real impact are the foundation of building a thriving team. Sadly, many managers miss acting on that.
Brilliant writeup, Taha.
Wonderfully written 👏
I've seen managers who don't want to hold a design discussion and have meetings where people speak up. They are supposed to only care about how their sub-component works and have no insight on the bigger picture, the users or how the components would even interact with each other.
It results in an engineering disaster. Wish more people could see through this.
This is just amazing Taha!
There are team members who show spark by taking ownership and as leaders it is our responsibility to acknowledge them and give them the freedom to execute.
This is a great article Taha Hussain! Your insights are always valuable to me. As a young leader in my career facing similar challenges, reading about your experiences is incredibly helpful. Thank you!
I want to believe workplaces and bosses like this exist, but the cynic in me thinks this is just a feel good anecdote, no leader can possibly be that insightful, driven to do the right thing the right way, making engineering matter, think long term as opposed to next quarter, really have their engineers' backs, create purpose.
I hear you. Seeing is believing. If you haven’t experienced this then it’s hard to hope for a positive world like this.
"Shields Down" [1] is another phrasing of this idea that I particularly enjoy. Thank you for writing this.
[1] https://randsinrepose.com/archives/shields-down/
Thanks for sharing.
Compliance vs ownership - that's hitting hard! I'm going to continue to ponder additional ways I'm seeing that show up. You're so right. You want to see some fight, some investment.
Yes. It requires caring about it. Detachment sounds good on paper, but in reality, it does not bring the energy required to build great products.
Good article. From experience I can say it is one factor. Another one is also energy spend/ reward ratio. I was once figuring out a problem which would cost company a whole project, make them paying a fine and be sued for not delivering. Across different teams people were struggling to solve it and at the end conclusion was we lost it. I spend 2 months to come up with the solution which actually saved the project. Management happy ,project saved. I asked for a raise as I didn’t get one since 2 years. They after 2 months of meetings and talks offered me like 100 bucks more and “promotion” with another responsibilities and no compensation.
It did felt like slap in the face being honest and I lost my enthusiasm for the job starting looking for another one.
Ouch. I have seen this many times. Reward for good work is more work and less appreciation. Good yo moved on instead of facing heroic suffering.
Glad you liked it, Ikram. Learn them, experiment, and share your learnings.