Developing strong Tech Instincts

A key skill set that has been beneficial throughout my career is my technological instinct. By ‘tech instinct,’ I mean the gut feeling to quickly sense which technologies, tools, or architectures are likely to succeed (or fail) in a given context. Over time, this instinct allowed me to anticipate trade-offs, spot potential pitfalls, and zero in on promising innovations. As technologists, we face countless decisions daily, from high-stakes architectural choices to seemingly minor ones that may have significant downstream impacts. It is this instinct that helps me notice when things are derailing in a project and no one is noticing and I need to convince everyone to make changes. It also makes your opinions valuable, as others will seek your insights on strategic projects. Amazon encapsulates this idea within its leadership principle, "Be Right, a Lot," which emphasizes that leaders should be correct more often than not.

But how do you develop this instinct? When someone recently asked me for career advice on this topic, I realized the importance of articulating my approach clearly. Consequently, I decided to document my response in this blog post, covering why ‘tech instincts’ matter and how to cultivate them, along with some practical resources.

Why Breadth of knowledge Matters and the need to be grounded with Diverse Viewpoints

In my career, I had the opportunity to work on a diverse set of problems. Initially, my instinct regarding some of these problems was incorrect. However, I maintained an open mind and avoided succumbing to groupthink. It is crucial to resist the temptation of new technologies that seem attractive but may not be suitable for your goals. Additionally, projects can veer away from their initial objectives, not merely due to delays (which are easy to catch) but because external circumstances have changed, rendering original assumptions invalid. To develop sound instincts, one must learn from failures and discern patterns through experience. But, if I were to distill it down, it will focus on the following:

  • Exposure to a Broad Range of Topics: It is essential to have awareness of various subjects, even those unrelated to your primary field of expertise. I am not talking about depth of knowledge. Instead I am talking about breadth of knowledge; awareness of topics that might not be related to your primary domain.
  • Diverse Perspectives: On these topics, you need to be exposed to diverse viewpoints. It’s not enough to follow one domain expert. True insight arises from listening to contrasting perspectives from individuals with varied backgrounds, from adjacent industries, or even from healthy contrarian voices. When you gather those inputs and form your own opinion, over time your brain naturally synthesizes these different perspectives into your own informed opinions. For example, a subject matter expert on micro-services might have very valid facts about its applicability that might be grounded in his or her reality. But your situation may differ, so not all of those points will apply to you.

So that is great! But realistically, how do you go about increasing your breadth of knowledge and getting exposure to diverse viewpoints? In my mind, nothing beats learning from experience. Always be curious and try side-projects. Even if you don’t finish all of them, the process of going through the decision process will help you hone your instincts. The successful projects are likely those characterized by simplicity. Furthermore, interacting with other technologists, attending conferences, and having mentors in the tech industry are invaluable. Among the various ways to gain exposure to diverse tech perspectives, I've found technical forums particularly valuable, especially Hacker News.

Hacker News as a Learning tool

While Hacker News is an excellent platform, it is important to be aware of its limitations. The site tends to exhibit a strong Silicon Valley bias, influencing the types of discussions that receive more attention. Nevertheless, it has its strengths as well. Beyond the stories that are promoted to its homepage, the true value of Hacker News lies in the rich discussions accompanying these stories. Unlike other tech forums, HN discussions are moderated well. However, this does not mean that dissenting opinions are suppressed. On the contrary, the site encourages well-articulated positions, including those that contradict the prevailing sentiment, without allowing them to be overshadowed by superficial remarks.

Following Hacker News discussions can be challenging due to the volume of content. Each day, approximately 30 stories reach the homepage (in reality, this number is higher because some stories do not remain long enough and are replaced by others). So, here is what I suggest for someone new.

  • Instead of focusing on HN home-page (which can be very dynamic with stories flowing in and out), focus on the stories for the day before. This gives you a relatively stable list to look at.
  • Even with that list, engaging with every discussion may be impractical, as some stories generate over 500 comments. This is where you can lean into AI for assistance. I have talked about this before.

Leveraging AI and introducing the HNCompanion Bot

This brings me to my final point.On most days, the intention to follow Hacker News will not take precedence and will soon be forgotten amidst other priorities. In contrast, following social media tends to have more staying power. So, I have (along with Ann Catherine) created a HNCompanion Bluesky bot. This bot posts a story from the previous day every hour. The bot doesn't just repost HN articles links; instead it looks deep into the HN discussions and extracts key insights. As I have mentioned before, comments are the star of HN, and by analyzing the structure and content of the discussions, the bot creates concise summaries that highlight the most valuable perspectives. This will help you decide which stories are worth your time for further exploration. Additionally, if you follow this bot, the posts will appear directly in your timeline.

In summary, expose yourself to a wide range of topics, actively seek out diverse opinions, and use tools to filter signals from noise. If you want a turnkey way to do this, consider following HNCompanion bot. This can have a lasting positive impact on your career development and you can thank me later 🙂.