Junior to Senior with David Guttman
88 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 2 years ago -A weekly show for ambitious devs who want to take their career to the next level.
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Episodes
Aaron Crow - VP of Engineering at SPIDR Tech
March 01, 2021 13:00 - 40 minutes - 93.2 MBTalking Points: Leadership Values Illusions of Correctness Common Beginner Mistakes Valuable Technical Skills Learnable, “Innate” Skills Being Relentlessly Collaborative Value of Failure Quotable Quotes: “If I changed my attitude about things, I could actually contribute as a leader.” - AC “At the beginning of our careers, for all of us, there is so much that we don’t know.” - AC “Confidence without the experience to back it up is arrogance.” -AC “[Be careful and try to ...
Rand Fitzpatrick - Senior Manager of Product Management at Hashicorp
February 22, 2021 19:45 - 44 minutes - 101 MBTalking Points: Building a Mental Model Motivational Mindsets Hirable Dev Traits Communication Habits Team Skills Framing Your Career Evaluating New Technologies Quotable Quotes: “What do they actually need? How can we integrate it into their workflow? What can we do to make it easier for them?” - RF “Creating tools for other developers involves asking a lot of questions.” - RF “Ask ‘why’ all the time. Take nothing for granted.” - RF “Giving people context is empowering...
Rand Fitzpatrick - Lead Product Manager at Hashicorp
February 22, 2021 19:45 - 44 minutes - 101 MBRand and David go through motivational mindsets of engineers, positive teamwork skills, and how to frame your career so it best works for you.
James Hush - Lead Engineer at Remo.co
February 15, 2021 13:00 - 41 minutes - 94.9 MBTalking Points: Startup Lifestyle Healthy Problem Solving Setting Clear Goals Taking Ownership of Tasks Preemptive Assistance Communicating With Other Departments Small, Intentional Steps on Projects Quotable Quotes: “[Our applicants] would be great at our challenges, but would not be good at communicating.” - JH “[Standups] give you 10 minutes every day to give others context about what you’re working on and what you’re having issues with.” - JH “A good manager, good lea...
Daniel Winter - Co-Founder & CTO of Salusion
February 08, 2021 13:00 - 43 minutes - 99.3 MBTalking Points: Aligning Intentions Personal Growth Being Valued As A Professional Synchronizing Skillsets Important Remote Work Traits Organizing Your Worklife Branding Your Skills Researching Your Role Quotable Quotes: “I look for projects where I can go and create something.” - DW “In the tech world, we should assume that we don’t know everything.” - DW “It’s not only correct, but it’s also healthy to want to improve all the time on a personal level.” - DW “When you ...
Lauren Tan - React Data Team Engineer at Facebook
February 01, 2021 13:00 - 39 minutes - 89.7 MBTalking Points: Assessing Goals Thinking Beyond Code Interviewing Processes Core Skills & Technical Skills Find Right People For A Team Searching For A Job Exciting Tech Developments Quotable Quotes: “Think more than just about code.” - LT “Your seniority is often correlated to the effect you have outside of just yourself.” -DG “There are different approaches to interviewing and evaluating people.” - LT “I don’t like calling certain skills ‘soft’ skills. I like calling t...
Keith Hoerling - Founder and CTO of Dimensions Software
January 25, 2021 13:00 - 50 minutes - 117 MBKeith and David discuss the power of attitude, how thinking like Product can help your career, and how a little more effort in communication can have a profound impact on building your network.
Keith Hoerling - Founder and CTO of Dimension Software
January 25, 2021 13:00 - 50 minutes - 117 MBTalking Points: Critical Outlooks For Success Product Focus Focusing On The Customer Extract Value From What You Provide Main Hirable Attribute Selecting Reliable Frameworks Networking As A Junior Dev Quotable Quotes: “Start with the customer and then work backwards.” - KH “Every engineer should be a product person.” - KH “Are we building an experience that the customer loves and has the desire to use?” - KH “Attitude is 80% [ of why I hire someone ]” - KH “It’s so eas...
Dave Gullio - Co-Founder / CEO Videate
January 18, 2021 13:00 - 50 minutes - 116 MBDave brings up important aspects of career life in his discussion with David where he discusses the cultivation of skills, the importance of passion and persistence, and some fun stories on how not to do an interview.
Dave Gullo - Co-Founder, CEO Videate
January 18, 2021 13:00 - 50 minutes - 116 MBTalking Points: Thinking Constructively Applied Learning Power of Perseverance Cultivating Skills Lateral Career Paths Different Company Environments Negative Interview Traits Junior Dev and Senior Dev core differences Getting the most out of 1-on-1s Quotable Quotes: “Know what corners to cut and when.” DG “At every step [ through learning ] there was always an extra goal.” DG “I never worked or hacked on anything I didn’t think was fun first.” - DG “You want people t...
Dave Gullo - Co-Founder / CEO Videate
January 18, 2021 13:00 - 50 minutes - 116 MBTalking Points: Thinking Constructively Applied Learning Power of Perseverance Cultivating Skills Lateral Career Paths Different Company Environments Negative Interview Traits Junior Dev and Senior Dev core differences Getting the most out of 1-on-1s Quotable Quotes: “Know what corners to cut and when.” DG “At every step [ through learning ] there was always an extra goal.” DG “I never worked or hacked on anything I didn’t think was fun first.” - DG “You want people t...
Nate Murray - Founder of Newline.co
January 11, 2021 13:00 - 44 minutes - 102 MBTalking Points: Writing Educational Works Beginner Code Issues Importance of Writing Blog Posts Starting Your Blog Post Habits Qualities of Successful Devs Productivity Habits Evaluating New Technology Quotable Quotes: “I think my programming career was set back by two years because I couldn’t understand how 0 indexed arrays worked.” - NM “To be meticulous all the way through [ an educational book ] is a lot of work.” - NM “When you just learned something is the best time...
Amelia Wattenberger - Senior Journalist-Engineer at Polygraph/The Pudding
January 04, 2021 13:00 - 45 minutes - 104 MBTalking Points: Definition of Design Types of Learning Environments Setting Yourself Apart Designing Your Career Becoming A Known Quantity Quotable Quotes: “People thrive in a lot of different environments.” - AW “Being able to do so many things … I was able to find out what worked best for me and what area of the stack I enjoyed working in the most.” - AW “Figure out what really excites them, and lean into it to figure out a way to make a name for yourself.” - AW “Think ...
Jay Donnell - Sr Director of Software Engineering
December 28, 2020 13:00 - 53 minutes - 122 MBTalking Points: Early Career Paths Problem Solving New Job Nervousness Learning From Failure The Empathy Element Developing Communication Skills Demand for Junior Developers Quotable Quotes: “In reality [ choosing your first job ] isn’t an existential crisis.” - JD “You are constantly faced with problems that you don’t know that answers to and that’s normal.” - JD “Write [ your problem ] down formally, write out the steps that you took to solve the problem. … If you think...
Hala Al-Adwan - CTO at dotOrg Technology
December 21, 2020 13:00 - 38 minutes - 89.2 MBTalking Points: Critical Skills Analyzing Fear Leveling at Companies Setting Goals Team Collaboration Situational Conversation Remote Onboarding Quotable Quotes: “Fear is not something to be taken lightly … make friends with it … evaluate it.” - HA “Growth is not comfortable.” - DG “Is this the right fear or is it just a fear that is holding me back from recognizing my net opportunity?” - HA “Impatience, in its own way, becomes an obstacle.” - HA “[ Admitting when you...
Hala Al-Adwan - LA Based Tech Leader
December 21, 2020 13:00 - 38 minutes - 89.2 MBHala and David discuss how to use fear for good, how to set attainable goals, and how to communicate effectively to boost your career.
Val Karpov - Principal Engineer at Booster Fuels, Maintainer of Mongoose.
December 14, 2020 13:00 - 41 minutes - 94.3 MBTalking Points: Open Source Project Writing Skills Self Promotion Key differences in Junior and Senior Engineers Developing Code Ownership Creating Tech Talks And Blog Posts Quotable Quotes: “I absolutely recommend taking over an open-source project. It’s a great way to get experience.” - VK “Writing is a very important skill, especially in modern times.” - VK “Written [ instead of spoken ] information can be extremely valuable to people as they can search for it after.” ...
John Shiple - Freelance CTO
December 07, 2020 21:00 - 51 minutes - 118 MBTalking Points: Importance of Building Your Community Training and Cross-Training Getting Your First Job Specifying Your Job Networking Tips Developing Communication Skills Dealing With Social Anxiety Involving Yourself In Events Quotable Quotes: “I think Computer Science degrees used to be a very big deal, I do not believe that anymore.” - JS “It has never been easier [ to become a software developer ] and it has never been more challenging.” - JS “If your job has the w...
Samy Kamkar, co-founder of Openpath Security
November 30, 2020 13:00 - 46 minutes - 107 MBTalking Points: Engineering Team Organization Networking at Tech Events Personal Meaning in Side Projects Accessibility of Side Projects Importance of Public Speaking Skills Quotable Quotes: “It’s really good to join one if these communities and share what you are working on because it’s a great way for people working on similar and really cool projects find you.” - DG “It’s very hard to be good at something and deliver good results if you’re spending a lot of time with som...
Mike Brevoort - Platform Architect at Slack
November 23, 2020 13:00 - 47 minutes - 108 MBTalking Points: Management and Individual Contributor roles Career Awareness and Growth Technology Acceleration Transferability of skills between programming languages Negative aspects of a generalist career path Hirable aspects of an applicant Quotable Quotes: “It’s hard to be really serious about being good at [ either management or individual contributor ] and do each well.” - MB “If you want to be a really great manager you really have to care about people. You have to ...
Vinoj Zacharia - Engineering Manager at FloQast
November 16, 2020 13:00 - 49 minutes - 114 MBTalking Points: Traits of a Senior Dev Hirable traits of a Junior Dev Value of curiosity Creating impactful projects Aspects of going remote Quotable Quotes: “How can I start making others successful?” - VZ “It doesn’t matter what part of your career you’re in. That ability to problem solve with others is going to serve you well.” - VZ “I look at hiring as two facets: 1. What can you add to the culture of this company? 2. How can you help move the roadmap forward? “Th...
Spencer Carney - Engineering Manager at Superstruct.
November 09, 2020 13:00 - 50 minutes - 117 MBTalking Points: Leadership opportunities within a team Addressing problems as a manager Team-building responsibilities as a manager Build your responsibility in a team as a junior dev Introducing new technologies to a team Definition of “Seniority” Managing a team with your previous experience Quotable Quotes: “A big motivator [ to become a manager ] for me was that I do not want to be as bad as some of the bosses I have unfortunately worked under.” - SC “One of the most ...
Rob Maigret - former CTO of Revver & Co-Founder of DigiSynd
November 02, 2020 13:00 - 44 minutes - 101 MBTalking Points: Hirable traits of developers Failure is a tool Distinguishing expectations of interviewers The balance of talent in a team Visibility at work as a developer Boundaries in the workplace Developing healthy relationships in the workspace Importance of empathy Power in subtle wisdom Quotable Quotes: “I don’t think people hire people that they don’t want to be friends with or hang out with.” - RM “If [ working at your job ] is just to make a buck and you don’t...
Jon Jandoc - Principal UI Frontend Engineer at Bambee
October 26, 2020 12:00 - 41 minutes - 95 MBTalking Points: Jon Jandoc’s Career Beginnings Management and Single Contribution Tool Sets and Optimization Key Engineer Traits Forms of Positive Communication Quotable Quotes: “Don’t focus on the tools but [rather] the principles.” - JJ “It’s hard for me to get excited about webpack, but I respect it a lot.” - JJ “I have strong feelings about lots of things, but I don’t hold on to them too tightly because I am always open to other things.” - JJ “There is always somethi...
Dan Shaw - Godfather of Node.js
October 19, 2020 12:00 - 34 minutes - 78.3 MBFeaturing Dan Shaw, The Godfather of Node.js and Co-Founder of COR. Talking Points: Qualities of a Senior Developer Important Team Traits Empathy before Technical Skills Benefits of both Freelance and Teamwork Learning from failure Quotable Quotes: “The most remarkable thing about a senior developer is the level of focus they have.” - DS “Seeing a mid-tier developer level-up because they’re surrounded by experts was incredible.” - DS “In Node.js’ case, the limiting factor...
Carter Rabasa - Organizer of Cascadia.js & Founder of FizBuz
October 12, 2020 12:00 - 58 minutes - 134 MBTalking Points: Origin of Cascadia.js Balancing Personal Needs and Job Requirements Specifics of Devrel position Importance of self branding in Devrel Setting achievable goals Qualities of a Senior Dev Importance of empathy Developing empathy Signaling values in your resume Applying to all companies vs specific companies FizBuzz Website Quotable Quotes: “I shipped one of the first NPM packages for Twilio.” - CR “As an evangelist or someone who is in Devrel (Developer R...
Jad Meouchy - BadVR Co-Founder
October 05, 2020 12:00 - 38 minutes - 87.6 MBTalking Points: Find opportunity by listening Junior Devs and their fresh approach Interview questioning techniques Technical Process vs Output Onboarding at BAD VR Forms of documentation Quotable Quotes: “I heard a problem and I offered a solution.” - JM “I like the concept of hiring people who are really well experienced, but I like the reality of hiring people who are demonstrating excitement, passion, self-learning.” - JM “If they have a fundamental understanding of h...
Brandon Harvey - Director of Software Engineering
September 28, 2020 12:00 - 40 minutes - 92 MBTalking Points: The value of failure Transitioning to larger roles Get noticed as a potential manager. Filtering applicants based on the interview Three types of engineers you will meet in your software career Importance of interpersonal harmony in the workspace Importance of the “Airport Test”. Job hopping vs long term stay Aligning your values with a company Quotable Quotes: “When the tide goes out, when things are not going good, it lays bare who creates value, where v...
Ben Wilhelm - Bootcamp Graduate Mentor
September 21, 2020 12:00 - 41 minutes - 95.7 MBTalking Points: How understanding the context of the tools you learn can help overcome imposter syndrome. Ben discusses a healthy view of what a true junior dev is. Positive and negative patterns of entry level developers. What people consider before hiring junior engineers. Advice to Junior Devs who are interviewing currently. Important aspects to consider when developing your software career. Quotable Quotes: “Go deep in what you do know and understand it, and go shallow i...
Chris Ferdinandi - Web Developer & Author
September 14, 2020 12:00 - 46 minutes - 108 MBTalking Points: Learn how Chris switched careers from HR to Development. Most important aspects of learning programming. The networking experience. Good talking points to start networking with people. Importance of understanding the hiring process from the hiring manager’s point of view. Tips and tricks that will help you land your first job. Should you get any job in tech or find where you fit? And how do you find that fit? Red and green flags to look for when applying to a...
Thomas Wadsworth - Product Management
September 07, 2020 12:00 - 48 minutes - 112 MBFeaturing Thomas Wadsworth, Co-Founder of TvPass and former Director of Product Management and User Experience at Disney Talking Points: What is the special relationship between Product and Engineering? Important conversations to have between Product and Engineering at the beginning of a project. What is it like to work with engineering teams across the world? How was Thomas’ experience working with engineering teams at Disney? What is a POD based system? Discover intern...
Eric Gradman - CTO, Inventor, Artist
August 31, 2020 12:00 - 46 minutes - 107 MBFeaturing Eric Gradman, Co-Founder and Mad Inventor at Two Bit Circus Talking Points: What is Two Bit Circus? Coding involved in Two Bit Circus. The inherent value of side-projects. Should you only focus on the latest frameworks? The interview process of Eric Gradman. Possible pushback in side projects. What would Eric do if he was just starting out as a Junior Dev? Specialization vs. generalization? Quotable Quotes: “Give us twenty minutes and we will turn you into a...
Andy Burke - Fintech CTO
August 24, 2020 12:00 - 49 minutes - 113 MBTalking Points: What is FinTech? How did Andy get into FinTech? Possible changes in FinTech. Andy’s experiences in the game industry. Andy's deep-rooted issues in the game industry. The value of side projects as a Junior Dev. Andy's interview experiences at the places he has worked. Tips for Junior Devs' mindset in the interview phase. Andy’s favorite aspects of an interviewing Junior Dev. What would Andy do if he was just starting out as a Junior Dev? Life at Startups v...
Ben Junya - Lead Front-End Engineer
August 17, 2020 12:00 - 41 minutes - 94.7 MBFeaturing Ben Junya, js.la co-organizer and Lead Front-End Engineer at StaffMeUp Talking Points: What does it mean to be a creator? Positive aspects of creating your own programs. Find the differences between SAS companies and Agencies. Day-in-the-life of Ben Junya. Ben’s process in application development. How to rapidly progress your communication skills. How to become better at predicting edge-cases. Challenges Ben faces when converting a website from PHP to JavaScript. ...
Angus Perkerson - Senior Software Engineer at REX
August 10, 2020 12:00 - 1 hour - 70.5 MBFeaturing Angus Perkerson, js.la co-organizer and senior software engineer. Talking Points: What are aspects to consider regarding the longterm value of companies that you apply to? What is the interview process with a startup like? Does it matter if the company is %100 tech? Explore a day-in-the-life of a Senior Software Engineer. What is Agile Development? What are the values in an engineer that matter the most to Angus? How does Angus manage his team? What does Angus loo...
Swyx - Coding Career Handbook
August 03, 2020 12:00 - 48 minutes - 110 MBFeaturing Swyx, former Developer Experience Engineer at Netlify and current Senior Developer Advocate for Amazon Web Services ( AWS ) Talking Points: Best practices in goal setting. Gain new perspectives to the interview process. New ways of defining software engineering roles. How to pick your first job. Should you specialize your job skills? The multiple layers of knowledge used in programming. What is expected of a newly hired Junior Developer. Shaun goes into detail abo...
Zeno Rocha - Habits of Highly Productive Developers
July 27, 2020 12:00 - 42 minutes - 37.2 MBFeaturing Zeno Rocha, author of 14 Habits of Highly Productive Developers Talking Points: What Zeno looks for when interviewing developers Choosing which technologies to learn Can anyone learn to be an awesome coder? Learning new languages and frameworks using side projects Feedback loops and learning Difference between junior and senior developers Quotable Quotes: “How are you going to behave during that job interview? How are you going to behave when you get that job? Tho...
Spencer Allen - Veteran Tech Recruiter
July 20, 2020 23:15 - 41 minutes - 37.7 MBFeaturing Spencer Allen, js.la co-organizer and veteran tech recruiter Talking Points: The path to get to where a recruiter is seeking you out What hiring managers are looking for How to send the right signals to hiring managers How to communicate effectively in an interview Preparing for an interview How to know if a company is an engineering culture dumpster fire The role of nervousness in an interview What good hiring managers do The right path for a code school grad / ...