The “Last Lecture” is a tradition inspired by Etsy and by Randy Pausch’s book, The Last Lecture, in which someone departing shares their perspective: “What wisdom would you try to impart to the world if you knew it was your last chance?” …

A second-aid guide for how managers and leaders can support colleagues through traumatic events and trauma recovery — Content Warning: high-level discussion of traumatic events without details, including SA, hate crimes (Pulse 2016, Minneapolis 2020), and grief/loss. The discussion centers validation and empathetic action but may surface survived trauma. I’ve been through personal trauma and community trauma. What I needed and how I felt varied wildly day to…

How I learned to stop worrying about hashes and love PRFs — Let’s, uhhhhh, hash this out a bit, because the distinction between “when is a hash okay” and “when is a hash not okay” is very important for teaching software engineers who will often use hashes in their work. As summarized by renowned security and privacy expert Dr. Lea Kissner, “Hash…

N.b.: I am not a therapist nor a mental health expert. Complex trauma is prolonged, repeated exposure to traumatic experiences that we have little or no ability to escape—e.g., *gestures generally at 2020*. People experiencing complex trauma can develop Complex Trauma Disorder (C-PTSD). Our feelings and reactions to complex trauma…

I want you to think of someone you worked with recently — someone who did something helpful, impressive, or someone who guided you to achieve something yourself. …

“It’s time to write more performance reviews already!? I’m not prepared; what do I do!?” 1. Don’t panic ok maybe a little panic 2. Schedule time for writing reviews Writing good reviews takes time. Set aside some time on your calendar. …

I’ve been in a variety of STEM spaces in both academia and tech, including women-only, women-centered, and coed spaces. Hackbright Academy is not unique, but my experiences at Hackbright stand out. Not all women’s spaces Women’s spaces often replicate or merely avoid the pitfalls of current tech culture, with attitudes like “lean in” or…

Influencing product direction without being a product manager — Every Product Management (PM) guide teaches that a PM must influence people and develop relationships without holding authority. None of these guides will tell you how. This is my story.