Author Archives: Connor MacDonald

Sent this to my mom today. Hope it finds you wherever you are: Today I saw the snow falling, soft and steady. It feels like such a gift this year, doesn’t it? With the way the seasons have been shifting, I wasn’t sure we’d see it at all. But there it is—quiet and perfect, blanketingContinue reading “Message to my Mother”

1:1 meetings are an important part of managing a team. It’s much more important that you realize your team’s potential than drive particular expectations when someone is growing, and so – sometimes doing that requires a bit of iteration and creativity. This week, I tried out some new 1:1 questions into my rotation courtesy ofContinue reading “This week’s 1:1 coaching questions”

Working from home has definitely highlighted how frustrating it can be making sure that all of your peripherals are working together seamlessly when you are about to hold a meeting that you need to go without a hitch. For less than $100, I found a really great hardware solution (the Elgato Stream Deck) that I’veContinue reading “Automation with Elgato Stream Deck”

One of the hardest things to do as an engineering manager is to stop letting what you think is right be the driver of your team. Instead, actually, you have a bunch of perspectives on your team that are all valuable – and they often can formulate their own opinions. As a result, a lotContinue reading “Coaching Questions for Engineering Managers”

To understand the following, I want to explain three things. First, I’ve been struggling with mental health and maintaining balance since I was a kid. Secondly, I’ve been meditating for a few years now, using a few apps as assistance (Ten Percent Happier, Waking Up, Headspace), and a few podcasts (Ten Percent Happier, The OneContinue reading “Self-Conscious or really, just Self-Critical?”

Recently, I started a new gig, where I am working with a team that is spread across several timezones and any one person can be 10 hours from another person. This was either a problem where I’d have to get up early and communicate a lot – or just accept the miscommunication. Gmail has thisContinue reading “Sometimes, the most impressive features are tiny and come at just the right time.”

Just trying to get some words written down here. So please humor the poor editing. In a way, we’re all prisoners re-entering back into the world. The pandemic is slowing down here in Massachusetts, and with it comes the realization that we can’t all just hide in our bunkers any more. Or maybe we can.Continue reading “The world is back, and it’s going to be weird. Maybe more so depending on who the world perceives you to be.”

I think everyone has had a tough time detaching during the pandemic. “Love what you do, and you’ll never work a day in your life” is an old adage that doesn’t apply to these times. Sometimes when you love something, you care too much about it, and that can sometimes lead to empathy burnout. IContinue reading “Three weeks off – what is it like?”

I think sometimes the aphorism of reinventing the wheel sometimes is true – but sometimes it’s frustratingly painful – and it comes down to one thing: Do you trust the person who has created the wheel? Did that person have one good idea and build it for their use case and never iterated on it?Continue reading “Why you shouldn’t believe “Don’t reinvent the wheel” on its face. Somebody has to.”