Vulnerability True: Surviving Brutal Code Reviews and Tech Interviews

Let's talk about vulnerability in tech. Two aspects of our careers in which we're the most vulnerable are code reviews and tech interviews.

We’ve all been there: getting ripped apart in a pull request or having a really bad tech interview. Those are times we can feel at our most vulnerable, especially if the experience is particularly negative. These events cause us to doubt our abilities, make us question our career choices, and in some cases, lead some to leave the industry altogether due to burnout. How do we protect ourselves through these vulnerable events?

In this talk, I will give actionable feedback on how to improve our collective code review and tech interview experience.

We'll learn how to write bullet-proof pull requests to minimize unproductive feedback, and how to talk to your manager or teammates about improving the code review process.

We'll also cover how to prepare yourself both technically and mentally for technical interviews, and how to deal with the fallback of a negative tech interview in ways that are productive and healing for you.

Transcript

1. Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews Cecy Correa // @cecycorrea // self conference 2019 1 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews {vulnerability: true}
2. Hi, I’m Cecy! 
 @cecycorrea Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 2
3. Let’s talk about vulnerability Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 3
4. Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 4
5. Presentation theme goes here 5 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
6. Failure Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 6
7. “…with failure comes fear and anxiety” 
 —Emotional First Aid 7 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
8. I want to talk about failure & vulnerability 8 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
9. code reviews & tech interviews Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 9
10. Code Reviews Building bullet proof PRs 10 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
11. 11 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
12. Why does this happen?
13. How does it make you feel? 13 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
14. Find a way to get control back 14 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
15. Create a bullet-proof pull request 15 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
16. DISTRACTIONS 16 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
17. Presentation theme goes here Bullet-proof PRs • Make your PR as small as possible • Provide context • Provide visuals
 (where applicable) 17 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
18. Small PRs aka Extreme Slicing EXTREME SLICING is the practice of breaking down a task into its smallest possible sub-tasks 18 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews SMOL BOI
19. Presentation theme goes here Put your PR in Context • Context is king • JIRA / Trello / ticket • Problem you’re solving • Solution 19 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews THE CONTEXT KING
20. Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 20
21. Bullet-proof PRs •Are small •Provide context 21 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
22. Presentation theme goes here What if that still doesn’t work? 22 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
23. It’s part of a larger systemic issue Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 23
24. Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 24
25. How do we collectively improve? Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
26. Presentation theme goes here Define success as a team 26 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
27. Establish a team Operating System Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 27
28. “The ultimate goal is to improve the quality of the code and the product, and any unpleasant tones of one-upmanship should be avoided. Remember that the code is not the author and the author is not the code. Do not take or make things personal.” 28 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
29. Codify as a team how to provide feedback Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 29
30. Feedback should be actionable Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 30
31. Feedback should be in context Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 31
32. Feedback should not do the work for someone Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 32
33. Bullet-proof PRs •Are small •Provide context 33 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
34. Good feedback •Actionable •In context •Sets people on the right path 34 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
35. </code reviews>
36. Tech interviews Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 36
37. The rule about technical interview club is… Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 37
38. Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 38
39. Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
40. People perform inconsistently Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 40
41. Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 41
42. People suck at gauging their own performance Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 42
43. Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
44. "When people think they did poorly, even if they actually didn’t, they may be a lot less likely to want to work with you.” Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 44
45. ok, interviewing is hard, we get it Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 45
46. Prep before the interview Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 46
47. Prep before the interview During the interview Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 47
48. Prep before the interview During the interview After the interview Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 48
49. Presentation theme goes here Before the interview • Do practice with katas • Don’t over prepare • Do prepare talking points • Do research the company 49 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews CODEWARS.COM
50. Cracking the Coding Interview Programming questions and solutions Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 50
51. Presentation theme goes here During the interview • Bring comfy shoes, water • Make sure your code works • Don’t be afraid to ask for what you need 51 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
52. You only get nervous when you really want something 52 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
53. Past failures can affect our performance 53 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
54. Self-care after a bombed interview 54 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
55. Emotional First Aid • Write it down • Identify lessons learned • Focus on factors you can control 55 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 55
56. Focus on factors you can control WHAT YOU CAN CONTROL I had a headache I didn’t come across as technical 56 WHAT YOU CAN’T CONTROL People coming back from vacation Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews 56
57. Don’t take it personal (easier said than done!) 57 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
58. Think from an employer perspective “False negatives are acceptable … they’re far more concerned with false positives” — Cracking the Coding Interview 58 Surviving Code Reviews & Tech Interviews
59. Thank you