Ask HN: How do you deal with managing cocky programmers? - tn_
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jonny_storm
Adam Savage once said he distrusted anyone that hadn't failed, and I share
this sentiment. It's likely that, if you haven't failed spectacularly, then
you've not had the opportunity to internalize the lessons that come from
failure: humility, caution, compassion, self-awareness, respect for evidence.

If you've already hired talent without this experience, then you'll either
need to carefully craft an opportunity for them to fail or wait for them to do
so all on their own. The latter is, for me, intolerable, and I would rather
provide the proudest among them vague architectural tasks that pit their
design sense against that of their coworkers. Being in charge of a design
that's perpetually torn apart by your fellow implementors is good practice,
and it may even reduce the total hubris of the group.

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sheraz
Depending on their age I show them the door as I have little patience for
disruptive or disrespectful cockiness.

or, sometimes in the case of cocky interns, I let give them enough rope to
hang themselves. Cockiness at a younger age is just unrefined ambition.

But an arrogant 30 year old that's been in the game for 5 years? Don't let the
door hit your ass on the way out.

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nomanonn
Give them a task that you know is going to be extremely challenging for them,
and tell them that they are the only one you know can handle something so
important in such an urgent amount of time. Push their skills to the limit and
let them back a sweat over it. It's good for the company and everyone involved
no matter what the outcome. Get creative. They can't possibly know it all,
remind them.

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whiguwgilug
Confront them. Tell them they're being a dick.

