[Kc] Programming, personality types and job performance

[Randall Munden]

All,
    This came across the radar [of the irc channel I loiter in] this
week, was briefly discussed and affirmations were made as to the
astounding parallels made with the personalities of the participants
in the discussion.  Then -- in the style of irc -- the topic was
dropped in favor of some other, probably boobies.

    I have since been following the blog (there have been two
additional posts in the same vein) with numerous comments attesting to
how similar the description is to themselves -- or a programmer they
know.

    The impetus for the blog author was how to keep this personality
type gainfully involved in a company's success, i.e. working at full
capacity.  Based on the discussions I've had and my own observations
there seem to be a lot of programmers/IT types that exhibit the
rollercoaster ride of great excitement/high output highs to minimal
interest/low output lows all within the span of a few weeks or months.
 I've experienced it myself -- I got a little red in the face reading
some of the more negative traits described in these posts, knowing I
had exhibited them before.

    So how is it that all these programmers stay employed?  Does the
rockstardom of their highs outshine their lows?  Is management capable
of identifying these individuals and keeping them productive?  Do I
need to find another career?  Farming perhaps?

--rjm--
-- Any sufficiently advanced incompetence is indistinguishable from malice.

http://www.librarything.com/profile/blather