Keeping The Saw Sharp
Are you sure you're sharpening the right one?
Sharpen(ing) the saw is generally good advice for people in all professions. Particularly in industries where the pace of change is high, and if you’re not sharpening your saw, at least some of your skills are atrophying.
So it is for people who work in / with technology. There’s plenty of good advice out there for how to keep your technical saw sharp from folks like Jeff Atwood and Scott Hanselman.
What happens when people transition from the role of a software developer to a manager? Some energy continues to be poured into keeping that technical saw sharp, but the motivations vary:
Love for the learning and intellectual stimulation that inevitably comes from keeping the technical saw sharp.
Wanting to keep the option of switching back to an IC role.
Not wanting to see a hard earned skill (often over many years) wither away with time.
It’s the only “saw” some people can see, so naturally, it’s the only one they can think to sharpen.
Be especially wary of that last one. While the mechanics of moving into a management role might have come about through a promotion, this is in reality a different job. A different role with a different set of expectations (although many companies and individuals in the role might still treat it as an “engineer with direct reports” role).
Congratulations, you now have another saw to sharpen!
The saw of skilled management. The saw that - yielded well - will:
Forge a high functioning and highly committed team
Produce an environment of growth and fulfillment at work
Be a multiplying force (for good) for the organization
The tools that helped you sharpen your technical saw won’t necessarily work for the management saw. The underlying drive to learn and grow is the same, but sharpening the management saw must be done with intention.
All I’m saying is:
Be aware that you have another saw to sharpen.
The new saw works very differently, it’s impact is often felt over longer distances of time than the technical saw. Don’t discount it, or dismiss it, just because it might be more ethereal or abstract to wield.
You might find it difficult to be an effective manager if you aren’t sharpening the management saw, working with a blunt and ineffective instrument, getting frustrated because you didn’t even know it was something you had to sharpen. Sharpen both, by all means. But balance your energies wisely.
I’m often asked by people newly transitioning into management whether their technical skills will atrophy. I can’t possibly answer that question for you. It depends on your individual context, and the energy you spend continuing to keep that saw sharp. “Technical skills” means a lot of different things here, and that topic deserves its own post.
However, in worrying about what you might lose, don’t forget about you will gain.