.NET
Why Do Older .NET Developers Hate Modern .NET? (via Nick Chapsas)
Mostly misconceptions, and some branding missteps by Microsoft (e.g., .NET Framework vs. .NET Core — it still has “.NET” in the title).
The Common Entity Framework Mistake You MUST Fix (via Nick Chapsas)
- The example application starts as a .NET 7 / EF Core project where the service classes use a DBContext.
- The integration tests use WebApplicationFactory and Faker — see the Dometrain course on integration testing.
- Don’t replace the built-in provider of EF Core with an in-memory provider, because then the tests are no longer true integration tests. Integration should fully test how EF turns C# into database queries and how the DB uses those queries. It’s best to have an actual database that’s called.
Culture
What’s Fueling Burnout in Your Organization? (via HBR)
- This article talks about how it’s not the workload, but the collaborative demands for that work; this leads to increased potential for misunderstanding, misalignment, and imbalances of capacity.
- “The more complex, the more matrixed, the more required communication and connection between employees, the more ad hoc the more microstresses are going to be impeding the effectiveness of work.”
- Have processes that make sense (relying on processes instead of people).
- Agree on collaborative norms about how to communicate.
- Having people spread over multiple teams doesn’t give them time to build the kind of trust needed for efficient collaboration.
- Leaders must shape and communicate the goal you’re all working toward.
- The individual’s purpose needs to extend beyond the corporate one.
- Be mindful of how your microstresses as a leader impact your team.
Organizational Change
10 Pitfalls That Destroy Organizational Trust (via HBR)
- Aversion to making choices
- Reliance on heroic employees
- Shiny object syndrome
- Disengaged middle management
- Casual relationship with other people’s time
- Comfort with collateral damage
- High incidence of the “Sunday scaries”
- People-pleasing in the board room
- Tolerance for misalignment
- Delusions of meritocracy
Create Stories That Change Your Company’s Culture (via HBR)
- Be authentic
- Feature yourself in stories
- Break with the past and lay a path to the future
- Appeal to hearts and minds
- Be theatrical
- Empower others to create their own stories
Work
4 Ways to Make Work More Meaningful (via HBR)
This article has several example questions to pull on the following threads: craft your work, make work a craft, connect work to service, and invest in positive relationships.