The 10x engineer is a much sought after breed in Silicon Valley.
But how does one identify him? Well, a thread on Twitter attempted to do just that... and got lots of reactions from developers and the common folk alike!
— Shekhar Kirani (@skirani) July 11, 201910x engineers
Founders if you ever come across this rare breed of engineers, grab them. If you have a 10x engineer as part of your first few engineers, you increase the odds of your startup success significantly.
OK, here is a tough question.
How do you spot a 10x engineer?
Some of the stereotypical behaviors of the "10x engineer" mentioned in this thread include skipping meetings, not being punctual, and just generally being bad team players. But then again, they are amazing at code.
Ever since the 10x engineer thread was posted on Twitter, it has sparked a discussion on the platform. While some are saying an early stage startup needs such coding geniuses, others are calling them prima donnas.
Hell, there’s even a parody already!
all these years I thought The Silicon Valley is a comedy TV show, but apparently it's a documentary #10xEngineer
— Michael Sverdlik (@m1keil) July 14, 2019
— April Wensel (@aprilwensel) July 13, 2019Why are we even still talking about the #10xEngineer?
Hereâs a talk I gave last year on why itâs a silly concept thatâs actually hurting your team and the industry in general. https://t.co/JdnMp0CA5I
— Scott Hanselman (@shanselman) July 13, 2019How do you spot a 10x engineer?
No need. Theyâll tell you.
For those rare times you're in the office, when a pleb from the team comes over to ask a question, put on the look of a pained genius. Follow that with with a facepalm. They'll soon go away and be useless again, leaving you to continue being fantastic. #10xEngineer
— 10x Engineer (@engineer_10x) July 14, 2019
But this one kinda wins the hearts!
I used to be a #10xEngineer & thot way too much of myself until I got to know my first boss a bit better. I joined when we were a 20 ppl company and after 2 years we got bought out. My boss taught me tht empathy & camaraderie will take me a lot further than being an asshole (1/2)
— Aryan Oberoi (@beingarryan) July 14, 2019
What’s your take on the 10x engineer? Will you hire one if you had a startup?