“This is one of the harder biases to get over in my opinion, because it means acknowledging our own limitations, and really stressing the fragile parts of the code that we write. We all want and expect our software to work, so we are inescapably drawn to evidence that confirms this desire. Keep fighting this urge, keep testing, and always question your assumptions.”
Jonathan Klein on how our brains deceive us when encountering issues in software development.
Useful Science is a site that attempts to summarize research and scientific findings in a simple way. They even have a nice newsletter.
“I would often catch myself pulling out my phone to merely check the time (and then check the time again since I never actually remembered it the first time). This frequent ‘time check’ reenforced the habit of constantly pulling out my phone and undoubtedly led to unnecessary browsing if a waiting notification piqued my interest. Buy a watch. Wear it.”
https://medium.com/p/15308056cfae
Speaking of distractions, put your damn phone away.
“And when you’ve finished that batch of email responses and are ready to return to your work? Close that email client, friend! Don’t open it back up until you’re ready to dedicate your attention to it again. Otherwise, it’s just a distraction. I find it useful to set times for checking my email throughout the day, for instance 10 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 4 p.m.”
http://alistapart.com/column/my-life-with-email
Some good tips here. Email is one of those deceptively simple things that everyone misuses.
“Most companies measure performance based on individual accomplishments. But that system doesn’t reward people for a lot of essential behind-the-scenes work. And it can reward people that either take credit for others’ work, or are better at showing off than working. The traditional approach sometimes advances the wrong people, and can end up hurting companies, Grant argues.”
http://qz.com/197420/the-best-measure-of-an-employee-is-how-well-she-mentors-others/