If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.
Chinese proverb
Transformative power of guidance
10 years ago I was overweight, maybe not more than +12 kg, but it definitely had a bearing on the quality of my life and (!) future health perspective.
Back then I thought I ate reasonably healthy and did my daily walk (the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends you “do at least 150–300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity”, I definitely did that).
Now I know: I simply ate too much sugar and my total caloric intake was too high. I also wasn’t hitting the gym. No muscles, no “engine” to burn more energy (and even when I started a routine I lost muscle because I did not align my diet for it to be effective).
The difference between THEN “assuming I was doing things ok-ish” yet getting bad results, and NOW, maintaining a lean physique quite effortlessly, not having to be a saint with my diet either, is … coaching.
When I was out of shape, I recognized a significant gap and grew increasingly frustrated with the status quo. Until one day I said: “f* it, I need to address this!” or I will live with the negative consequences the rest of my life!
So I sought help. What I did not know yet at the time was that getting a professional coach will move you from the slow to fast lane.
Success leaves clues.
Jim Rohn
… and a coach will show you those clues!
It’s also kind of reassuring knowing that with a coach you just have to listen to that “one source of truth” (especially in this all too distracting world!). That when you follow their advice and put in the daily effort, you will get similar results (at least relative to the level you are currently at).
So I did just that, dropped 10kg, live in a body I am happy with, and the rest is history.
Effective coaching has that power. It can get you out of a rut, it will give you clarity about your goals and makes you laser focused in order to achieve them.
Just as I needed guidance to navigate my fitness journey, many find the same to be true in their software development careers.
However, some people are skeptical. They see “coaching” more as a tool for athletes and business leaders.
Which brings me to …
Debunking 7 common myths of software coaching
In the rest of this article I will show you why it’s a must for software developers too.
Although there is a fundamental difference between “getting lean” and “landing a developer job”, as a (aspiring) developer, applying the general principles of coaching can help you get to your goals faster.
Myth 1
What will I gain from software coaching that I can’t just figure out on my own?
There are so many (free) resources out there. You can get a whole education just by spending hours consuming them, right?
Wrong. This mentality leads to what’s known as “tutorial paralysis.”
Tutorial paralysis is the phenomenon where individuals become overly reliant on tutorials and educational content. Instead of actively working on projects or problems on their own, they continue to watch or read one tutorial after another, mistakenly believing they are making progress.
In reality, they are stuck in a loop of passive learning without any real-world application. Your time and effort is best spent working on concrete goals, with somebody that reviews your work giving continuous expert advice and keeps the higher-level goal in mind.
No “passive” learning method gives you this, and that’s where all of the free resources fall short. They are valuable but only as an add-on to a goal-focused + guided approach.
Even classroom training suffers from this shortage, it’s too passive. The information needs to go both ways and feedback on goal oriented work is what really sticks and where the real learning happens. This isn’t rocket science, we see it every day with the people that work with us.
Myth 2
It’s just about the tech skills.
This definitely is an appealing thought which we entertained for a long time.
Until we reflected back on our careers and made a balance sheet of what “assets” really contributed to our growth. Tech skills were high up there, unmissable, but so were “soft skills” (we like to group them under “mindset” rather).
Things like the ability to communicate well, asserting influence, negotiation skills and grit + persistence. Coaching by a HUMAN is super powerful here, because it’s through human interaction and 1:1 (and group) conversations that we nurture those types of skills.
It also requires a deep trust in the person you work with, because this stuff is often very personal. Coaching is built on trust and that’s also where you can get very deep.
You might actually not know what deeper issues you have stashed away and that are consciously (or unconsciously) holding you back. Working closely with a coach you trust and through working on complex things together (which again requires will hit both tech and soft skills), deeper things get addressed that you were not even aware of in the first place. This is important and that’s where we have seen people’s progress going through the roof.
Myth 3
I am too much of a beginner or too advanced for coaching.
Coaching is for all levels.
For a beginner, coaching provides an incredible boost of motivation and a foundation in the basics.
But for those more advanced, its value doesn’t diminish. In fact, even top professionals in various fields, from sports to business, continuously seek coaching to refine their skills and gain new insights.
With a more advanced person, coaching can be about fine-tuning, autonomous growth, and strategic course correction.
You might think: “My situation is so unique, I doubt a coach can help me”. Again, coaches are humans so they can (and will) adjust their styles and levels to each person they work with and at all phases of the coaching journey. It’s the perfect customized learning form, and this is the reason we think it’s so highly effective.
Regardless of your skill level, whether you’re a beginner or advanced, coaching can be tailored to meet your specific needs
Myth 4
Fitness milestones are very tangible, for software devs this is not the case.
True, right? Fitness is all about the nominal weight progression (measured daily on the scale), a six-pack for the more fitness aficionados, calories tracked, number of cheat meals. All very tangible indeed.
But in software we can get very specific too:
- Number of quality projects on your GitHub, packages shippped to PyPI.
- Code quality can be measured, both by how you write code and general “care” you put into your projects (e.g. adding a test suite + proper documentation < why is FastAPI so popular?)
- Number of successful code reviews or pull requests merged.
- Number of tech blog posts (or YouTube videos or other content pieces) published every year
- Number of meaningful contributions to open-source projects (“greens” on GitHub profile).
- Etc.
Everybody that we’ve worked with has improved on multiple aspects above, both because their tech skills improved but also their confidence to start (or continue) putting their work out there. As the saying goes:
The harder I work the lucker I get!
– Samuel Goldwyn
Myth 5
It takes too much time and/or with enough time I will figure it out myself.
The beauty of coaching is that results show up after months (not years), sometimes even weeks!
This is because it changes the way you think, and everything starts with thought. And this will compound over time, because a new mindset will pay dividends moving forward. So no, it does not take too much time per se.
The “I will figure it out” is a bit more insidious, because yes, you can get very far by yourself.
However, there is a category of unknown unknowns that is hard, if not impossible, to really see and grasp without having worked with more experienced people in your field. They will open your eyes.
Going through PDM was eye-opening. Once shown what’s possible, you can’t unsee the potential—or the challenges.
PDM Client (a year after finishing the program)
Myth 6
A coach will do the work for me, so I won’t learn as effectively.
When I started as a coach I fell into the trap of doing too much for my clients, specifically writing parts of the code. it’s typical for the engineer in us: we love to code hence we will do so whenever we can.
But that’s not the most effective for people that needed to learn and really understand. Hence I changed and prefer to show the way. There is no better experience (for both coach and client) than “showing just enough”, enabling clients to find answers by themselves.
It’s often said that coaches unlock people’s potential. This is interesting, it means that you already have it in you, but you mostly need the help of a coach to get it out. Coaching people is much more about enabling them to succeed and this is again a very human endeavor!
This also means that a coach does not have to have all the answers, they are learning with you. They cannot (and should not be) specialist in all fancy new technologies (falling into the trap of shiny new object syndrome), they are much better when they have a wide scope and generalist skillset (for the reading list: Range).
Myth 7
Coaching / working with somebody is expensive.
Yes, the upfront cost of coaching might seem high. However, what you should consider is the Return on Investment (ROI) it offers.
Think about it this way: if a coach accelerates your learning and career progression by even a year or two, how much is that worth in salary, job opportunities, or personal growth? The insights, skills, and connections you gain through coaching can be invaluable. These benefits can lead to better job positions, increased earning potential, and greater job satisfaction—outcomes that far exceed the initial cost of coaching.
A prime example is Matt, a participant in our PDM program. Through coaching, he not only developed his technical skills but also saw a significant boost in his earnings:
Furthermore, there’s the non-tangible ROI. The increased confidence, clearer direction, reduced stress, and the elimination of potentially years of wandering aimlessly in your career, wondering if you’re doing the right things.
Every change requires an investment. Investing in coaching isn’t just about spending money; it’s about investing in your future self. The prospect of making exponential leaps in your career and personal growth makes the cost of coaching pale in comparison.
It takes courage to invest in your growth. But the regret of missed opportunities and unfulfilled potential can be a much greater expense in the long run.
Conclusion
Just as the old proverb goes: “We don’t give you the fish, we teach you how to fish.” By embarking on a coaching journey, you’re not only acquiring immediate skills but also fostering a transformative mindset that will be the cornerstone of your future growth and success.
Beyond tangible results like completed projects and an enriched GitHub profile, the true value lies in the new approach and perspective you’ll adopt. An approach that empowers you to tackle challenges more efficiently and capitalize on opportunities more effectively, setting you up for long-term success in your career.
Are you ready to leap forward in your development journey?
I went from being unsure about my skills and feeling like an imposter to launching an MVP (Minimal Viable Product); a cloud based video trans-coding solution. At the outset of the program they gave me a survey of my goals and desired outcomes and molded my time with them to suit me and those goals.
Aaron J (PDM Client in Canada)