Becoming a Technical Leader
Becoming a Technical Leader
About the Book
Becoming a Technical Leader is a personalized guide to developing the qualities that make a successful leader. It identifies which leadership skills are most effective in a technical environment and why technical people have characteristic trouble in making the transition to a leadership role. For anyone who is a leader, hopes to be one, or would like to avoid being one
This is an excellent book for anyone who is a leader, who wants to be a leader, or who thinks only people with 'leader' or 'manager' in their title are leaders. The book can be described briefly as a guide to developing personal leadership potential, but it is much more than that . . . it is filled with useful insights into personal growth as a professional
Readers say it's always fascinating, and "focuses our attention on what it takes to make teams of thinking technical people work effectively together." Moreover, they say "it's always extremely practical and down-to-earth.
Becoming a Technical Leader is the "textbook" for Jerry Weinberg's world-famous Problem Solving Leadership Workshop. It consists of twenty-four well-reasoned, thought-provoking chapters on making the change from technical star to problem-solving leader.
About the Author
Bundles that include this book
Table of Contents
- Reviews of Becoming a Technical Leader
- Preface
- Foreword
- PART_ONE_DEFINITION
-
Chapter 1. What Is Leadership, Anyway?
- THE RELUCTANT LEADER
- FACING THE LEADERSHIP ISSUE
- A CONVENTIONAL BUT FLAWED VIEW OF LEADERSHIP
- CONTRASTING MODELS OF THE WORLD
- AN ORGANIC DEFINITION OF LEADERSHIP
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 2. Models of Leadership Style
- MOTIVATION
- IDEAS
- ORGANIZATION
- THE MOI MODEL OF LEADERSHIP
- WHAT TECHNICAL LEADERS DO
- FAITH IN A BETTER WAY
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 3. A Problem-Solving Style
- UNDERSTANDING THE PROBLEM
- MANAGING THE FLOW OF IDEAS
- CONTROLLING THE QUALITY
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 4. How Leaders Develop
- PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
- THE GREAT LEAP FORWARD
- FALLING INTO THE RAVINE
- GROWTH IN THE REAL WORLD
- HOW GROWTH FEELS
- THE METACYCLE
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 5. But I Can’t Because
- I’M NOT A MANAGER
- I’M NOT THE LEADER TYPE
- I’LL LOSE MY TECHNICAL SKILLS
- I’M IN GRAVE DANGER OF GROWING
- I DON’T WANT THAT MUCH POWER
- QUESTIONS
- PART TWO: INNOVATION
-
Chapter 6. The Three Great Obstacles to Innovation
- ARE YOU AWARE OF WHAT YOU HAD FOR DESSERT?
- SELF-BLINDNESS: THE NUMBER ONE OBSTACLE
- NO-PROBLEM SYNDROME: THE NUMBER TWO OBSTACLE
- SINGLE-SOLUTION BELIEF: THE NUMBER THREE OBSTACLE
- SUMMARY
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 7. A Tool for Developing Self-Awareness
- A TEST OF YOUR MOTIVATION
- YOUR INITIAL REACTION
- YOUR PERSONAL JOURNAL
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 8. Developing Idea Power
- THE PROBLEM-SOLVING LEADER’S CENTRAL DOGMA
- CREATIVE ERRORS
- STOLEN IDEAS
- CORRUPTED STOLEN IDEAS
- COPULATION
- WHY IDEAS SEEM WICKED
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 9. The Vision
- THE CAREER LINE
- THE EVENTS DON’T MATTER
- CAN SUCCESS BREED FAILURE?
- THE CENTRAL ROLE OF THE VISION
- WHY THE VISION CREATES AN INNOVATOR
- FINDING THE VISION IN YOURSELF
- QUESTIONS
- PART THREE: MOTIVATION
-
Chapter 10. The First Great Obstacle to Motivating Others
- TESTING YOURSELF
- AN INTERACTION MODEL
- THE MANIFEST PART OF AN INTERACTION
- THE HIDDEN PARTS OF AN INTERACTION
- SATIR’S INTERACTION MODEL
- UNDERSTANDING WHY COMMUNICATIONS GO AWRY
- A WAY TO START CLEARING COMMUNICATIONS
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 11. The Second Great Obstacle to Motivating Others
- WEINBERG’S TARGET
- PLANNING AND THE FUTURE
- THE SECOND GREAT OBSTACLE
- THE LEADER AS A PERSON
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 12. The Problem of Helping Others
- HELP SHOULD BE NATURAL
- TRYING TO BE HELPFUL: AN EXERCISE
- SOME LESSON•S ABOUT HELPING
- HELPING AND SELF-ESTEEM
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 13. Learning to Be a Motivator
- ALWAYS BE SINCERE (WHETHER YOU MEAN IT OR NOT)
- SURVIVAL RULES
- META-RULES
- TRANSFORMING RULES INTO GUIDES
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 14. Where Power Comes From
- POWER AS A RELATIONSHIP
- POWER FROM TECHNOLOGY
- EXPERTISE AS POWER
- KEEPING POWER
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 15. Power, Imperfection, and Congruence
- A MECHANICAL PROBLEM
- MATURE PATTERNS OF BEHAVIOR
- DEALING WITH YOUR OWN MECHANICAL PROBLEMS
- THE PAYOFF FOR BEING CONGRUENT
- QUESTIONS
- PART FOUR: ORGANIZATION
-
Chapter 16. Gaining Organizational Power
- CONVERTING POWER
- USING POWER
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 17. Effective Organization of Problem-Solving Teams
- A SPECTRUM OF ORGANIZATIONAL FORMS
- MIXED ORGANIZATIONAL FORMS
- FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION
- APPENDIX: SCORING THE RANKING
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 18. Obstacles to Effective Organizing
- FIRST OBSTACLE: PLAYING THE BIG GAME
- SECOND OBSTACLE: ORGANIZING PEOPLE AS IF THEY WERE MACHINES
- THIRD OBSTACLE: DOING THE WORK YOURSELF
- FOURTH OBSTACLE: REWARDING INEFFECTIVE ORGANIZING
- ORGANIC ORGANIZING
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 19. Learning to Be an Organizer
- PRACTICE
- OBSERVE AND EXPERIMENT
- LOOK FOR INCONGRUENCE: THEY’RE DOING THE BEST THEY CAN
- LOOK FOR CROSSED WIRES
- LEGITIMIZE DIFFERENCES
- USE YOURSELF AS A MODEL OF THE TEAM
- CHANGE AS YOU SUCCEED
- QUESTIONS
- PART_FIVE: TRANSFORMATION
-
Chapter 20. How You Will Be Graded as a Leader
- THE PROFESSOR’S FIRST DAY OF CLASS
- A STRATEGY FOR IMPROVEMENT
- CAN TEACHING AND LEADING BE LEARNED?
- GRADING ON THE FIRST DAY
- A POSSIBLE SOLUTION
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 21. Passing Your Own Leadership Tests
- A TOP EXECUTIVE TEST
- THE ABILITY TO WITHSTAND TESTS
- HOW TO HANDLE AN INTRUDER
- WHAT’S THE RIGHT WAY?
- USING AND ABUSING TESTS
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 22. A Personal Plan for Change
- AN EXPERIMENT
- THE MENTAL CLIMATE FOR CHANGE
- A PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT PLAN
- CAN IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
- ELEMENTS OF A PLAN
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 23. Finding Time to Change
- STAYING ON TARGET
- DOING TWO THINGS AT ONCE
- THE CHEAPEST TUITION
- QUESTIONS
-
Chapter 24. Finding Support for Change
- A SUPPORT SYSTEM
- TECHNICAL RESOURCE SUPPORT
- SUPPORT THROUGH CRITICISM
- SUPPORT FOR GROWTH
- SUPPORT FOR RECOVERY
- EMOTIONAL SUPPORT
- SPIRITUAL SUPPORT
- QUESTIONS
-
Epilogue
- ROSY’S RESPONSE
- DAVE’S DEVIATION
- LISTING ASSETS AND LIABILITIES
- TREATING YOUR OBSESSION
- Bibliography
Authors have earned$10,085,459writing, publishing and selling on Leanpub, earning 80% royalties while saving up to 25 million pounds of CO2 and up to 46,000 trees.
Learn more about writing on Leanpub
The Leanpub 45-day 100% Happiness Guarantee
Within 45 days of purchase you can get a 100% refund on any Leanpub purchase, in two clicks.
See full terms
Free Updates. DRM Free.
If you buy a Leanpub book, you get free updates for as long as the author updates the book! Many authors use Leanpub to publish their books in-progress, while they are writing them. All readers get free updates, regardless of when they bought the book or how much they paid (including free).
Most Leanpub books are available in PDF (for computers), EPUB (for phones and tablets) and MOBI (for Kindle). The formats that a book includes are shown at the top right corner of this page.
Finally, Leanpub books don't have any DRM copy-protection nonsense, so you can easily read them on any supported device.
Learn more about Leanpub's ebook formats and where to read them
Top Books
- #1
C++20
Rainer GrimmC++20 is the next big C++ standard after C++11. As C++11 did it, C++20 changes the way we program modern C++. This change is, in particular, due to the big four of C++20: ranges, coroutines, concepts, and modules.
The book is almost daily updated. These incremental updates ease my interaction with the proofreaders.
- #2
C++ Best Practices
Jason TurnerLevel up your C++, get the tools working for you, eliminate common problems, and move on to more exciting things!
- #3
Atomic Kotlin
Bruce Eckel and Svetlana IsakovaFor both beginning and experienced programmers! From the author of the multi-award-winning Thinking in C++ and Thinking in Java together with a member of the Kotlin language team comes a book that breaks the concepts into small, easy-to-digest "atoms," along with exercises supported by hints and solutions directly inside IntelliJ IDEA!
- #4
Sockets and Pipes
Type ClassesSockets and Pipes is not an introduction to Haskell; it is an introduction to writing software in Haskell. Using a handful of everyday Haskell libraries, this book walks through reading the HTTP specification and implementing it to create a web server.
- #5
Introducing EventStorming
Alberto BrandoliniThe deepest tutorial and explanation about EventStorming, straight from the inventor.
- #6
Composing Software
Eric ElliottAll software design is composition: the act of breaking complex problems down into smaller problems and composing those solutions. Most developers have a limited understanding of compositional techniques. It's time for that to change.
- #7
Cloud Strategy
Gregor Hohpe“Strategy is the difference between making a wish and making it come true.” A successful migration to the cloud can transform your organization, but it shouldn’t be driven by wishes. This book tells you how to develop a sound strategy guided by frameworks and decision models without being overly abstract nor getting lost in product details.
- #8
node-opcua by example
Etienne RossignonGet the best out of node-opcua through a set of documented examples by the author himself that will allow you to create stunning OPCUA Servers or Clients.
- #9
Functional Design and Architecture
Alexander GraninSoftware Design in Functional Programming, Design Patterns and Practices, Methodologies and Application Architectures. How to build real software in Haskell with less efforts and low risks. The first complete source of knowledge.
- #10
Ansible for DevOps
Jeff GeerlingAnsible is a simple, but powerful, server and configuration management tool. Learn to use Ansible effectively, whether you manage one server—or thousands.
Top Bundles
- #1
Software Architecture for Developers: Volumes 1 & 2 - Technical leadership and communication
2 Books
"Software Architecture for Developers" is a practical and pragmatic guide to modern, lightweight software architecture, specifically aimed at developers. You'll learn:The essence of software architecture.Why the software architecture role should include coding, coaching and collaboration.The things that you really need to think about before... - #2
Django for Beginners/APIs/Professionals
3 Books
- #3
PowerShell
3 Books
Buy every PowerShell book from Adam Bertram at a 20% discount! - #4
CCIE Service Provider Ultimate Study Bundle
2 Books
Piotr Jablonski, Lukasz Bromirski, and Nick Russo have joined forces to deliver the only CCIE Service Provider training resource you'll ever need. This bundle contains a detailed and challenging collection of workbook labs, plus an extensively detailed technical reference guide. All of us have earned the CCIE Service Provider certification... - #5
Cisco CCNA 200-301 Complet
4 Books
Ce lot comprend les quatre volumes du guide préparation à l'examen de certification Cisco CCNA 200-301. - #6
All the Books of The Medical Futurist
6 Books
We put together the most popular books from The Medical Futurist to provide a clear picture about the major trends shaping the future of medicine and healthcare. Digital health technologies, artificial intelligence, the future of 20 medical specialties, big pharma, data privacy, digital health investments and how technology giants such as Amazon... - #7
Linux Administration Complet
4 Books
Ce lot comprend les quatre volumes du Guide Linux Administration :Linux Administration, Volume 1, Administration fondamentale : Guide pratique de préparation aux examens de certification LPIC 1, Linux Essentials, RHCSA et LFCS. Administration fondamentale. Introduction à Linux. Le Shell. Traitement du texte. Arborescence de fichiers. Sécurité... - #8
Software Architecture and Beautiful APIs
2 Books
There is no better way to learn how to design good APIs than to look at many existing examples, complementing the Software Architecture theory on API design. - #9
Learn Git, Bash, and Terraform the Hard Way
3 Books
Learn Git, Bash and Terraform using the Hard Way method.These technologies are essential tools in the DevOps armoury. These books walk you through their features and subtleties in a simple, gradual way that reinforces learning rather than baffling you with theory. - #10
9 Books-Bundle: Shut Up and Code!
9 Books
"Shut up and code." Laughter in the audience. The hacker had just plugged in his notebook and started sharing his screen to present his super-smart Python script. "Shut up and code" The letters written in a white literal coding font on black background was the hackers' home screen background mantra. At the time, I was a first-year computer...
