So today has marked another turning point in my life. Although just another year, the big three-zero does seem to bear the weight (at least in my mind) of responsibility, sobriety, adulthood. No longer in my fancy-free 20s, is it time to knuckle down and take things a bit more seriously? Possibly.

A colleague of mine with whom I’ve been pairing on a few projects has recently left for pastures new. A bit of a guru, with tonnes of experience; it was great to be able to compare and contrast our experiences. Although he came equipped with a whole bunch of experiences with different frameworks, patterns, technology stacks, ceremonies and the like; there was a single piece of advice he gave me which seemed to really hit home:

Slow Down.

There’s a weird pressure I’ve felt when pairing with another developer (of any level), where I’ve felt myself second-guessing my decisions. Perhaps due to some weird insecurity, perhaps out of a need to try and impress other people; I’ve felt myself bending under the strain of the scrutinisation of my navigator. Although this tends to work out favourably in the main (the “extra pair of eyes” effect); I’ve often found it to hamper progress and indeed sometimes completely derail my train of thought.

By consciously trying to re-train myself to slow down, and appreciate the fact that my partner is in this with me I’ll hopefully be able to let go and stop my brain from getting in the way… of my brain.