#+SETUPFILE: ../../../template/level-2.org
#+TITLE: Reflective Post
#+DATE: <2022-01-31 Mon 17:05>
#+AUTHOR: vaeringjar
#+EMAIL: vaeringjar@land
#+DESCRIPTION: Annual reflective essay-ish.
#+KEYWORDS: blogging


* About

I want to make this an annual thing. I already have my regular blob
posts, but here I will answer a series of questions based on a
questionnaire I had answered in the past.

I think I see some typos from the previous years, but I'll let those
go for now...


* Reflections

#+BEGIN_QUOTE
Is your job confusing? Do you ever ask questions about what you need
to do at work?
#+END_QUOTE

I ask questions, but I don't have any specific or general
confusion. Most of the work I have done over the last year I would
describe as as-needed, as-assigned, or ad-hoc. But for the vast
majority, I enjoy the tasks I have to work on and I know how to do the
work I have been assigned to.


#+BEGIN_QUOTE
What training did you participate in this year? In what ways was it
helpful?
#+END_QUOTE

The most significant thing, I participated in exercises on
cleancoders.com, some of which are also on YouTube for gratis. Robert
Martin, their spokesperson, is one of the most influential software
engineers/developers in the world. Doing these exercises has had a
positive effect on my architectural choices over the last year. I get
a lot out of helping my peers and critiquing their code, but working
on exercises and watching others code with vastly different or more
experience gives me a well rounded perspective.


#+BEGIN_QUOTE
During the past year, what parts of your work gave you the most
satisfaction? What have you found challenging?
#+END_QUOTE

Sometimes these are the same thing. Some of the code I maintain I
wrote five or more years ago. The challenging part, which is also fun,
happens when I try to figure out how to make the best positive change
in the shortest amount of time. Sometimes this leaves out a better
change that might have taken more time. Making these decisions is
probably one of the things in my job that I have the most autonomy
over.

In some cases, these decisions involve an open source project that I
wish had a feature that it lacked. So in my own time, again this is
something I have autonomy over, I have been able to implement those
features or discuss with the developers of those projects to implement
them.


#+BEGIN_QUOTE
What would help you to work more collaboratively in your work
environment?
#+END_QUOTE

If I think back over the last year and the year before, the direct
collaboration has absolutely increased when it comes to python
development. We have a weekly check-in meeting, effectively a stand-up
meeting, directly related to collaborating on the same, shared, or
related projects with our integrations and web APIs. More of this
collaboration, cross-training, and stand-up meetings would help.


#+BEGIN_QUOTE
When you need direction or information, are you able to get the help
you need?
#+END_QUOTE

When it comes to business knowledge, overwhelmingly, yes, I can get
the help I need. The folks I work with almost always have the missing
pieces when I need to know more.


#+BEGIN_QUOTE
Are there aspects to the job you feel you need to work on?
#+END_QUOTE

There is always room for self-improvement. Off-the-clock, I am active
in the free software/open source community and the local academic
community. I spend a lot of my time keeping up on new trends, but I
also focus on the solid foundations of computing such as those that
came out of the 1950s.

In terms of the time spent on-the-clock, time for focusing on tasks
and cross-training can both improve quality by reducing distractions
and diversifying perspectives. There are still some duties of mine
that only I work on, so it would be nice to work together to see some
of those benefits.


#+BEGIN_QUOTE
What goals and objectives do you have for your job or for future
development for the coming year?
#+END_QUOTE

Again, I still plan on eventually re-pursuing a PhD in computer
science, once things settle down a bit. 2020 and 2021 have been very
atypical years.
