The People Stack Podcast

Episode 333: Dan Pickett on Coding Bootcamps, Training Engineers, and the Importance of Being Supportive and Practical

February 19th, 2024  |  1 hr 20 mins

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

Rob interviewed Dan Pickett, President and Founder of Launch Academy and LaunchWare.

They talked about:

• The Launch Academy apprenticeship model and why it works
• What Dan learned about the best ways to prepare engineers for future jobs
• Why high-pressure techniques for training engineers fail
• What’s wrong with Computer Science Education
• Weaving a positive cultural fabric of trust for developers and leaders

Enjoy listening to this easy-going, friendly conversation that anyone in tech will find informative. If you’re in tech leadership, you’ll find it particularly eye-opening.

Episode 332: There’s Gold in Your Blind Spots

February 11th, 2024  |  25 mins 57 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

What’s in your blind spots? And how do you even find them?

I show you how in this episode.

I show you how to begin to leverage your internal guidance so that you can see what you’ve previously not seen.

This is going to help you build an even more powerful mindset, make even more mission-aligned decisions, take more inspired actions, and create your dreams!

Pay very close attention to this one!

Check it out right now.

Episode 331: The Gift of Stress

February 1st, 2024  |  29 mins 20 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

Yes, I said it. Stress is a gift.

In this episode, I show you how to embrace whatever stress you’re feeling, see the gift in it, and turn that into powerful career decisions and actions.

And I promise the process I share is not the usual “just accept it” mumbo jumbo.

We all feel stressed so I know every one of you is going to get value out of this one.

Check out this episode right now!

Episode 330: Top 10: Terrible Resume Advice

January 25th, 2024  |  32 mins 4 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

How do you create a powerful resume that significantly increases your chances of landing your Hell Yes job?

In this episode, we show you by revealing our top 10 pieces of terrible resume advice.

I also explain why they’re terrible so you can start applying powerful, sustainable, proven strategies for creating your dream career.

Check this one out right now!

Episode 329: Paradox of Action

January 18th, 2024  |  42 mins 56 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

Ready to take action in an entirely new way?

In a way that’s sustainable, fun, fulfilling, and full of impact on the other side?

To do this, you must first understand the paradox of action.

In this episode, I explain what that is and what your next action should be to create your dream career and dream life.

Enjoy this very practical episode filled with proven exercises to help you take the best actions possible!

Episode 328: Action Beats Motivation

January 10th, 2024  |  27 mins 35 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

It’s time to soar towards your career goals in 2024!

How? By applying this principle:
Action beats motivation

What does this mean and how do you apply it in YOUR career so that you can finally create the tech career you truly deserve?

Check out this podcast right now!

Episode 327: Hibernate to Prepare for Hyperspace

December 13th, 2023  |  37 mins 24 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

It’s hibernation season.

It’s also the season to prepare for massive growth in the new year.

In this episode, I define exactly what I mean by “hibernate” and “hyperspace.”

I also give you several practical and tactical tools so you can begin making micro-habit changes starting TODAY!
MASSIVE transformative changes are coming in 2024. Are you ready for them? ;)

Listen to this one right now to prepare!

Episode 326: Jason Silver on bringing joy to work, the importance of agency, and why decisions make you stressed

December 5th, 2023  |  1 hr 46 mins

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

For this episode, Rob and I interviewed Jason Silver. He’s a startup advisor and his new book, “Quietly Crushing It” is coming out in Summer 2024. We talked about:

• Finding joy in doing the hard things - while you deliver MORE (not less) value
• Why your dream job is not something you “win,” it’s a practice
• How to add agency to everything you do as a leader
• Assumptions about sales - what it is and what’s it’s not
• Feedback: the good, the bad, and the ugly
• A simple strategy that’ll drastically reduce your decision-making stress
• How to persuade people to change their mindset
• Why “what do you think?” can be a terrible question
• The importance of gratitude

This was an assumption-challenging conversation - even for us! Enjoy applying its valuable lessons

Episode 325: Holy $hit I Can’t Even

November 28th, 2023  |  35 mins 1 sec

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

How many more “drop everything!” crises can you handle right now?

It’s probably your current load minus 1 (or minus 10).

We live in an era of surrounded by overwhelm.

And it’s overwhelming!

How do you handle it like a badass leader so that you can intentionally create your dream career and dream life?

Check out this episode for a simple, zero-cost, 3-step process that you can do TODAY to start optimizing your response to stress.

Episode 324: Shobana Radhakrishnan on overcoming fear, giving women crutches, and why she’s not a medical doctor

November 21st, 2023  |  1 hr 35 mins

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

For this episode, Rob and I interviewed Shobana Radhakrishnan, Senior Director of Engineering at Google TV.

We talked about:

• Overcoming feeling “stupid” and asking “dumb” questions at large group meetings
• Why women employees don’t need crutches
• Building a culture of psychological safety (no, it doesn’t happen by accident)
• Why taking ownership is the key to career and leadership growth
• Why training job interviewers is of paramount importance
• Dealing with fear and playing outside your comfort zone
• Dealing with naysayers from a place of neutrality and confidence
• The “Friday Night” problem and the problem with having way too many subscriptions
• Why she chose a career in engineering instead of medicine

This was a delightfully rich conversation that will inspire you to grow as a leader and as a human!

Episode 323: Free Learnin’ is Worth Every Penny

November 14th, 2023  |  32 mins 24 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

Online courses - even with the best intentions - are self-improvement theater.

And there’s nothing wrong with theater! What’s important is to understand what it can and cannot do for you.

In this episode, I take a deep dive into online learning - what its value REALLY is, what it’s not, how to set yourself up for success when you take courses, and most importantly what to do AFTER.

Grab your favorite note-taking tools and cuddle up with this podcast so that you can leverage the wealth of information that’s out there and turn it into your Hell Yes tech job, with your Hell Yes team, and your Hell Yes Salary.

Enjoy!

Episode 322: Kathy Sebuck talks about growth mindset, connected balance, core values & what adulting really means

November 7th, 2023  |  1 hr 32 mins

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

For this episode, Rob and I interviewed Kathy Sebuck, Founder/CEO of Marchitecture and author of Waves of Change: Growth Mindset Tools for Connected Balance.

We talked about:
-What is a growth mindset and how do we know we’ve achieved it?
-Why discovering our core values is so important
-How to avoid weaponizing mindfulness and positivity
-Why being color blind to red flags might be ruining your life
-What adulting REALLY means (no, it’s not about paying bills or taking out the garbage)
-How to give yourself permission to be your best self & conduct your own woo-woo choo-choo

This episode was a blast to create and we hope it’s a blast for you to listen to! Check it out right now!

Episode 321: You're Color Blind to Red Flags

October 31st, 2023  |  30 mins 25 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

Some red flags are truly useless - like that colleague who always sends emails with “asap” in them and it’s never truly an emergency.

But others are helpful. And if you ignore these red flags, your career will suffer.

How do you know what red flags you’re ignoring that you shouldn’t be?

And why bother, anyway? Why is it so important to be aware of what we’re tolerating?

I explain all of this in this episode so that you can have a level of career & life clarity that you never had before…
…and create your dreams from the most powerful place possible.

Episode 320: Dave Sobel discusses managed service providers, the business & tech intersection, & the value of IT

October 24th, 2023  |  1 hr 20 mins

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

For this episode, Rob and I interviewed Dave Sobel, the host of the Business of Tech podcast (https://www.businessof.tech/).

We talked about:

• The ins and outs of managed service providers (MSPs) and why they’re relevant to a growing number of people (yes, even you)
• Why the intersection of business and tech is the key to success for so many tech folks
• How to move from being a cost center to being a revenue generator
• The importance of being comfortable talking about money, money, money
• Risk management, IT security, and the mafia behind current tech threats
• Why education is the core offering for many tech companies
• How he became a full-time podcaster

Enjoy this multi-layered, informative, and fun episode!

Episode 319: Stop Giving Advice!

October 17th, 2023  |  31 mins 16 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

Even if it’s well-meaning, advice can be harmful.

This goes for both giving and receiving advice.

Why is it harmful and what do you do instead?

I want you to empower yourself and others w/out treating them like robots…
...while you co-create all of the marvelous work & career & life outcomes you desire!

Check this one out right now!

Episode 318: Dream Jobs Don’t Have a Season

October 6th, 2023  |  27 mins 8 secs

careers, coaching, layoffs, leadership, product management, project management, promotion, raises, software development, tech management, technology

Stop treating your career like a seasonal gig.

There’s no “perfect” time or season to land a new job or promotion.

It’s time for you to treat your career with more intention and become a year-round badass career athlete!

In this episode, I talk about why this is so important and how to make this shift so you can create your dream tech leadership job no matter what’s going on externally.

Check this one out right away!