For a long time, tech culture has focused too narrowly on technical skills; this has resulted in a tech community that too often puts companies and code over people. Greater Than Code is a podcast that invites the voices of people who are not heard from enough in tech: women, people of color, trans and/or queer folks, to talk about the human side of software development and technology. Greater Than Code is providing a vital platform for these conversations, and developing new ideas of what it means to be a technologist beyond just the code. Featuring an ongoing panel of racially and gender diverse tech panelists, the majority of podcast guests so far have been women in tech! We’ve covered topics including imposter syndrome, mental illness, sexuality, unconscious bias and social justice. We also have a major focus on skill sets that tech too often devalues, like team-building, hiring, community organizing, mentorship and empathy. Each episode also includes a transcript. We have an active Slack community that members can join by pledging as little as $1 per month via Patreon. (https://www.patreon.com/greaterthancode)
199: Toxicity in Tech with Amy Newell
04:31 - Amy’s Superpower: Search Algorithms and Finding Things
- Finding Things in Code
- Visual vs Spacial Awareness
08:39 - Toxic Masculinity and Hierarchies in Engineering Roles
14:22 - Measuring Skill Advancement
- The Individual Contributor (IC) vs Manager Track
- Management vs Mentorship
21:02 - Congressive vs Ingressive
- x + y: A Mathematician's Manifesto for Rethinking Gender by Eugenia Cheng
- GTC Episode 038: Category Theory for Normal Humans with Dr. Eugenia Cheng
22:43 - Ways Toxicity Shows Up in The Workplace
- Doing/Recognizing “Real Work”
- Letting Go of Past Baggage
- Amy Newell - Lessons from Bipolar Disorder (The first time Amy said the word “Patriarchy”)
- Microaggressions
29:07 - Unlearning and Psychological Safety
37:07 - The Word “Nontechnical”
- Respecting Expertise
- Skilled/Unskilled Labor: All Labor is Skilled Labor!
40:41 - Recognizing and Feeling Value
- Being Your Authentic Self
- Making Culture Better for Everyone; Supporting People & Making Space
- Counting Emotional Energy
- Enough Leaning In. Let’s Tell Men to Lean Out.
- Yes, and-ing
Reflections:
Jessica: Every person has a unique set of ways they can have an impact and best contribute.
Jamey: Feeling like you belong and realizing that others might not. Being aware of both mindsets.
Amy: The onus really should be on people who have power and privilege in any conversation to be doing most of the work to be aware of what I see vs what they see.
Special Guest: Amy Newell.
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