It's easy to believe that everyone you get along with agrees with you about anything and everything. The truth is harder to confront, but often, this illusion can cause problems - especially when you actually want diverse perspectives. In this episode, we talk about two types of illusion of agreement, and how you might combat them.

The number of things you have to choose to do in a day is constantly being fought over. Your calendar, if it's like most calendars, has very little to do with how you *want* to spend your time. Limit your options. Focus on fewer things. Eliminate your obligations.

When we understand the features and boundaries of any object, we can do more with that object based on those constraints. This doesn't just apply to code - it applies to our lives in meaningful ways, and acts as a heuristic and a powerful model for thinking.

Averages can trick you into thinking a generalized idea about a complex set of data. This kind of compression happens not only with averages but any other process that summarizes information. Ask yourself: What am I missing in this story?

In today's episode, I have a discussion about product development and counter-intuitive decisions Dom had to make along the way in making Around (around.co). This is part two of the interview - make sure you go back and listen to the first part as well!

In today's episode, I have a discussion about product development and counter-intuitive decisions Dom had to make along the way in making Around.

Context is critical, but what does that mean? What are the parts of context you should care about? In this episode, we talk specifically about temporal context, and how you can think about context in terms of "inner" and "outer" layers.

"What do I do about this?" This question is one that can trigger action, even in a moment of pain. When we make a clear decision about how we are going to react to our situation, we immediately change the narrative from "this is happening to me" to "this is what I'm choosing to do." This agency is critical to processing and managing difficult situations, and it will change how we relate to our experiences for the better.

If you can make better decisions, every other effort you put forth will benefit. One common error made when making decisions is overtuning on perfection. In today's episode, we'll talk about two razors that help combat this tendency.

Expectations can cause pain, but they can also be useful. An expectation should be a hypothesis. Where we go wrong is when we mix our expectations with our hopes or fears.

Flexibility is not something you conjure in a moment of need. It is something that is developed and gathered like a resource when you least require it.

There is something almost pseudo-religious about talking about purpose that is easy to get hung up on, especially if you don’t consider yourself a particularly spiritual person. Purpose is often equated with some kind of externally designated path. We often think of purpose as something that is destined or otherwise set out before us. If you have been hesitant or afraid to explore your own purpose, I want you to take some time to explore why.

Our brain wants beliefs to stay the same. We don't want to change, and yet progress is dependent on change. That doesn't mean your beliefs are all wrong if you have had them for some amount of time. But confirmation of pre-existing beliefs can limit your growth and progress as an engineer and as a human being. Put your beliefs on trial.

We see the world through stories. We communicate about the world through stories. So, the stories we tell turn out to be incredibly important to the way we operate in the world.

If you wait until your tank is empty, you've created an urgent situation you could have avoided. Keep your tank full, early and often. This applies to almost everything in our lives, but so often we sacrifice a full tank for some marginal gain. This leads to a scarcity mentality and a lack of flexibility. What can you do to fill your tank?

The most critical career mistake you can make isn't a secret. Are you in control? If you aren't driving your career, who is? Is your career being driven by someone else, or worse - no one at all?

The romance of endless success is a broken picture of reality. Instead, focus on inviting failure and taking advantage of the opportunity it brings: the opportunity to take responsibility.

What are your ideals? For many people, ideals are fragile. The moment we see a hero fall, our own lives are immediately thrown into a state of confusion. Instead of having fragile ideals, we should explore the underlying motivations, and set ourselves up for dynamic ideals that don't break easily.

Great questions trigger thought and further questions. In this episode, I pose 4 questions (and a bit of homework) to help you get a handle on where your career is headed. Whether you are in a transition point, at the beginning of your career, or in a senior role, these questions can help point you down the pathway to better understanding and clarity for where you stand today.

Joel Beasley is the host of Modern CTO, a podcast with guests coming from IBM, Microsoft, Nasa, Reddit, and hundreds of others. Joel and I have wanted to have this discussion for a long time, and we finally found the right overlap to do it! You can learn more about Modern CTO at https://moderncto.io and listen to this episode in the alternate podcast universe here. Thanks for joining me on Developer Tea, Joel!