I read. A lot. And I share the five best things I read every week. This week’s topics include the importance of communication in reducing error, a Elon Musk interview, Paul Graham on maker and manager schedules, Bayes theorem explained with legos and surprising post by Richard Branson.
1. John Nance on the importance of communication
2. Elon Musk interview
3. Manager and maker schedules
4. Bayes theorem explained with legos
5. Richard Branson on chess
My notes:
1. John Nance on the importance of communication
This five minute video makes a great case for why good communication is a good way to reduce errors. I loved the following points: communication is an inexpensive way to reduce errors, communication is not a given and the fallacy of “if we said it, it must have been heard”. Side note: I read and think a lot about the problem of patient safety in healthcare organizations for two reasons. One, a current Qxf2 client is building software to make patients safer. Two, it seems like testers can learn a lot this field – more so than say aviation, simply because healthcare is in the process of changing culture.
2. Elon Musk interview
I hope Elon Musk continues his path breaking work as an entrepreneur. I like this interview with him at the Detroit Auto Show. I noticed it as part of some article that gained traction on HN. I liked the interview because of how focused, smart and principled the answers were.
3. Manager and maker schedules
A clear explanation of manager and maker schedules. I have noticed this split in my own day. I run Qxf2, but I still work full time as an tester, engineer and team leader. I do both primarily because I do not want to give up testing as yet. I keep well partitioned time slots for the different roles I play. I was pleasantly surprised to see Paul Graham went through a similar schedule when juggling being both a maker and a manager. Now there is an outside chance that I am not messing up completely.
4. Bayes theorem explained with legos
I like legos. I like love probability. This article had both.
5. Richard Branson on chess
I suddenly like Richard Branson a bit more. He claimed chess was the best game in the world. I agree! Chess is awesome!
I want to find out what conditions produce remarkable software. A few years ago, I chose to work as the first professional tester at a startup. I successfully won credibility for testers and established a world-class team. I have lead the testing for early versions of multiple products. Today, I run Qxf2 Services. Qxf2 provides software testing services for startups. If you are interested in what Qxf2 offers or simply want to talk about testing, you can contact me at: [email protected]. I like testing, math, chess and dogs.
