Is Tech Lead the WORST Job For Most Programmers?

Thriving Technologist

Just the name Tech Lead has this kind of prestigious ring to it, and if you're like most programmers you might think it's the job to shoot for. But 20 years of my career have been spent leading software teams, and you might be surprised to know that tech lead is actually the worst job for most programmers!

Some of the information in this episode applies to IT professionals in any technical leadership role: whether that be leading programmers, UX, DevOps, QA - or any other discipline related to software development. But several of the points are more specific to programming leadership.

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Chapter markers / timelinks:

(0:00) Introduction (1:20) 1 TECH LEAD MYTHS (1:29) 1.1 Smartest Team Member (2:11) 1.2 Writes The Best Code (2:59) 1.3 Chooses Key Technologies (3:45) 1.4 Most Highly Compensated (4:12) 1.5 Motivates Through High Standards (5:19) 2 WHAT SHOULD A TECH LEAD DO? (5:22) 2.1 Improve Team Effectiveness (6:35) 2.2 Defend Team Members (7:52) 2.3 Congratulate Team Publicly (9:00) 2.4 Getting Team Consensus (10:19) 2.5 Help When Things Get Hard (12:57) 3 HOW BAD TECH LEADS GET PROMOTED (13:28) 3.1 Strong Individual Contributor (14:13) 3.2 Company Promotes Out Of Fear (15:01) 3.3 Management Misunderstands Role (15:25) 3.4 No Desire To Lead (16:15) 4 BECOMING A TECH LEAD (16:34) 4.1 Practice Defending Your Team (18:19) 4.2 Practice Congratulating Team (19:30) 4.3 Read Books on Leadership (20:46) 4.4 Work Closely With Others (21:52) 4.5 Learn More About the Business (23:28) Episode Groove

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