Have you ever had a boss who disregards your warning and then blames you when that exact issue occurs? In this episode, we unpack the chaos that unfolds when bosses refuse to listen, IT horror stories, brown-nosers, and understanding prototypes vs products. We also discuss productive practices, shedding insight on methods that work for people who hyperfixate and lose track of time. Oh, and yes, we also talk about cyclists storming the capital on bikes and smoking cigars as a nod to the mob.
Follow Up Notes
Host's detailed productivity methodology: time blocking the night before with hour-long focused work sessions, interspersed with physical chores as breaks to maintain mental freshness and get dopamine hits from completing small tasks.
Photo of a cyclist storming the U.S. Capitol building, in regards to host discussion about cults.
Follow Up Notes
Sean reports that regular podcasting has significantly improved his workplace communication speed and ability to process and respond to ideas quickly in professional settings.
Follow Up Notes
Discussion of the classic programming technique where explaining a problem out loud to an inanimate object (traditionally a rubber duck) often leads to discovering the solution through the process of articulation.
Quotable
“If you want the 30,000ft view, someone has to descend to a lower level to build what you see on your 30,000ft view, you dick.”
Frustration with managers who claim to be "big picture" people while dismissing the detailed technical work necessary to make their vision reality.
Diagram illustrating the disconnect between high-level management expectations and the reality of technical implementation, with the pyramid representing the idealized view and the ground level
Follow Up Notes
Hard-learned lesson about communicating upfront that prototypes are not production-ready systems, and adapting workflow to build production-ready software from the beginning to avoid crisis situations.
Follow Up Notes
Critique of university education using flipped classroom model where students teach themselves via YouTube videos, questioning the value proposition of formal education when instructors abdicate teaching responsibility.
Follow Up Notes
Kris's experience teaching middle schoolers the complex reality of planetary motion, including the difference between solar days (24 hours) and sidereal days, and how orbital mechanics create the need for correction factors.
Follow Up Notes
Discussion of worst-case climate change scenarios predicting up to 3 billion climate refugees due to sea level rise affecting coastal cities worldwide.
Google Earth Sea Level Rise Tool
Interactive tool mentioned for visualizing potential coastal flooding scenarios under various sea level rise projections, allowing users to see which areas would be underwater.
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