Paige Watson

"AI has removed the developer bottleneck"

If developers really were your bottleneck, throwing developers at a problem would actually have worked in the past 20 years

The Agile Manifesto at 25 – The Most Talked-About Unread Document In Software Feb 11th 2001 – exactly 25 years ago – was the first day of a 3-day meeting at the Snowbird ski resort in Utah that gave birth to the Manifesto for Agile Software Development. Like all …

It's 25 years to the day that proponents of iterative, "lightweight" development methodologies came together in Utah to work on their ski tans and pen the Manifesto for Agile Software Development.

I have thoughts, which I've typed out to make them visible.

codemanship.wordpress.com/2026/02/11/t...

The ADHD Developer's Career Ceiling Traditional career advancement paths privilege neurotypical traits and narrow definitions of success. For ADHD developers, the ceiling isn't about cap...

I've been reflecting on my career path lately and then wrote a post on it. Would love to hear your thoughts.
softwareascraft.com/adhd/adhd-ca...

Technical debt is organizational debt wearing a compiler-approved disguise.

yes, but the International Dad Code requires that we repeat it, in case there's someone who hasn't heard it.
This is particularly true the offspring of said Dad is within earshot.

Going from crap to okay's way easier than going from okay to good, which is way easier than going from good to excellent.

Look for the low-hanging fruit.

"But they don't even know the basics, Jason!"

Exactly.

THE BASICS.

Olivia Vick will be talking on "Taking Agency in Your Work" at Seattle Code Crafters Meetup on Feb. 26, 2026. 10:00am Pacific

Come join us to hear Olivia Vick speak on "Taking Agency in Your Work"
Seattle Code Crafters Meetup. Feb. 26, 2026 10:00am Pacific (virtual)

Everyone is always welcome.
www.meetup.com/seattle-soft...

Seattle Software Crafters welcome LLewellyn Falco on Thursday Jan. 22nd at 10:00am

Next Thursday January 22, 2026 @ 10:00am Seattle Code Crafters Meetup kicks off our 2026 year with LLewellyn Falco talking about AI and Code Craft through the lens of Soft Skills with AI.

Please join us for this online event.
As always, All are welcome.
www.meetup.com/seattle-soft...

"Secret police" is often misunderstood to mean a force that operates covertly, with all their operations secret.

But a secret police force's actions are often public. The secret part is hiding their identities, because they're breaking laws to hurt politically disfavored people, and fear reprisals.

Can Improving Your Design Sense Help You TDD? | Quality Coding If something is hard to TDD, how good is the design? A bad example from Apple leads us to explore design sense, SRP, and Clean Architecture.

If something is hard to TDD, what does it say about the design? A bad example from Apple leads us to explore design sense, SRP, and Clean Architecture. https://qualitycoding.org/design-sense/

Here is the video. Don’t let DHS lie about what ICE did.

Five years ago, a violent mob stormed the Capitol—people lost lives, more than 140 police officers were injured, and a democratic election was put under attack.

Donald Trump pardoned nearly 1,600 people involved.

Contact your representatives and demand they defend democracy and reject violence.

SeattleJS Meetup, Wed. Jan. 14, 2026

I'll be speaking on ADHD and Software Development at SeattleJS on Wednesday, Jan. 14th
Come join us for a great meetup!
www.meetup.com/seattlejs/ev...

Seattle Software Crafters meetup at Bellevue College, Tues. Jan 13, 2026

Come join us to talk about great development techniques.
All are welcome!
www.meetup.com/seattle-soft...

It’s never been the speed of your developers. Never.

The AI-Ready Software Developer #20 – It’s The Bottlenecks, Stupid! For many years now, cycling has been consistently the fastest way to get around central London. Faster than taking the tube. Faster than taking the train. Faster than taking the bus. Faster than ta…

While dev teams celebrate the speed of "AI" coding assistants, business stakeholders are increasingly asking why they're not getting to their destination any faster.

Allow me to explain.

codemanship.wordpress.com/2026/01/03/t...

Is Agile Open Northwest Worth It? Every year, someone asks whether Agile Open Northwest is “worth it.” So let’s skip the polite marketing language and be honest.Here are five excellent, highly sarcastic reasons you might want to stay...

Is Agile Open Northwest really worth it???
@rayarell.bsky.social has five (sarcastic) reasons why you shouldn't attend this amazing conference.
www.nuagility.com/post/is-agil...

🚨 USPS Postmark Change Alert 🚨
“Your mailbox date ≠ official postmark date”

What to do:
1️⃣ Mail early.
2️⃣ Ask for a manual postmark at drop-off.
3️⃣ Use electronic filing/payment whenever possible.

Spread the word! This will affect voting IMMEDIATELY.

Credit to @cjnlegalnurse for the vid

Something something great minds thinking alike... #refactoring #evolutionarydesign

Different articulations of a mental model will click with different people, but those models tend to be much more alike than they are different. :)

When men refer to themselves as "alpha males", I hear that in the context of software, where alpha versions are unstable, missing important features, filled with flaws, and not fit for the public.

Giant offshore windfarm supported by 7 out of 10 Brits

Want to see billionaire brainwashing in action?

Seven out of ten Brits are big fans of renewable energy and want to see lots more of it.

But they think the majority of people DON’T support it.

That disconnect isn’t an accident. 🧵

‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens

‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens https://theonion.com/no-way-to-prevent-this-says-only-nation-where-this-regularly-happens-3/

I’ve now been notified of another death in ICE custody — the 26th since Trump took office in January.

We need oversight, accountability, and justice. I will keep fighting for the dignity of immigrants in Trump’s horrific detention centers.

Two things must ye know about devs who say "I just wanna write code!"

1. They're the first to complain when requirements aren't clear, or when the architecture doesn't work, or when testers "break the code", or when their changes conflict with other people's

2. They often write the worst code, too

No “Time to Learn” The real waste isn’t time spent learning, it’s time spent not learning.

No “Time to Learn”:
softwareascraft.com/posts/teams-...

Mocking Frameworks are Code Smells If you need a mocking framework, your design is broken.

Mocking Frameworks are Code Smells: softwareascraft.com/posts/mockin...

File under:
“No good deed goes unpunished.”

Coworker and I are traveling to India. His plane arrives 45 minutes behind mine. I decide to wait (since we’re at the same hotel), so he cancels his separate car.
His plane is delayed, immigration is backed up, and I’ve been waiting out front with the driver for 3 hours.

…and it’s 4:00 am.

Last chance to turn it off.

On Monday, November 3rd, Microsoft will start using your LinkedIn data for AI training. And remember, you're opted in by default.

To toggle it off 👉 Account - Settings & Privacy > Data privacy > Data for Generative AI Improvement.

Compound Interest Works Both Ways Every shortcut is a loan against your future velocity, and the interest rate is brutal.

As a leader, you need to have a hard look at how you are dealing with Technical Debt, because "Compound Interest Works Both Ways" softwareascraft.com/posts/compou...