I read this book years ago, long before I became an engineering manager, and I really enjoyed it at the time! Reading your summary makes me realize how much of my management philosophy is rooted in the belief that people matter, that transparency is paramount, and that quitting is for other people. If I fail it won't be because I gave up. Thanks for a great reminder of a fun read!
After experiencing first hand the exact opposite (twice, but I decided not to "trash talk" two companies in one article 😅), I can tell with certainty that it doesn't work. People just leave.
Thank you, Orel, for the summary. I haven’t had the chance to read it yet, but I’ve added it to my reading list.
The story about your CEO’s excessive optimism seems like a classic case of managing expectations totally wrong.
Oh yeah, it is the worst.
People just literally stopped working and stopped responding to slack messages and the management thought they were doing a good job 🙄
I read this book years ago, long before I became an engineering manager, and I really enjoyed it at the time! Reading your summary makes me realize how much of my management philosophy is rooted in the belief that people matter, that transparency is paramount, and that quitting is for other people. If I fail it won't be because I gave up. Thanks for a great reminder of a fun read!
Hey Cotlin, I am happy you enjoyed it! :)
I completely agree.
After experiencing first hand the exact opposite (twice, but I decided not to "trash talk" two companies in one article 😅), I can tell with certainty that it doesn't work. People just leave.
Thanks for the mention!
Such a great read! Here were my top takeaways. Would love your thoughts
https://open.substack.com/pub/matthewharris/p/deep-dive-the-hard-thing-about-hard?r=298d1j&utm_medium=ios
Hey Matthew, glad you enjoyed!
The first part of your article captures beautifully the hard things about running a company.
I can't get to the second part because it's for subscribers only :)
Thank you for your feedback! What book are you reading next?
Give and Take, by Adam Grant.
What about you?
That was a great one. Finishing up Principles by Ray Dalio and moving onto the Rational Optimist by Matt Ridley