Resilience

ChatGPT defines resilience as “the ability to bounce back from adversity, adapt to challenging circumstances, and recover from setbacks. It's a mix of mental toughness, flexibility, and emotional strength that helps individuals handle stress and maintain their well-being even in difficult situations.”

In January 2023, I was laid off. After finding a new job in March 2023, I was laid off again in June 2024. While searching for work in late July 2024, multiple forest fires broke out near my home in Colorado. This added the challenge of dealing with an evacuation to my job search amid the worst job market in decades. A week later, the evacuation order was lifted, and I could refocus on my job search. The past few months have been extremely challenging, but there is a bright side (really, there is - hear me out).

“A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt.

When I started working in IT, I assumed that a proper software development lifecycle (SDLC) would catch software issues before they reached production. After several years in IT I realized that no matter how rigorous the SDLC, testing, or disaster recovery plans, unforeseen issues (Black Swans) will always arise. As the lifespan of a software system extends, the probability of encountering such issues increases.

The solution is to “respect the unexpected.” Organizations that anticipate unforeseen software issues in production can implement mechanisms to address them. Team members who encounter and learn from these issues become more skilled, less likely to panic, and more accepting of their recurrence.

Conversely, team members who dismiss such issues as impossible will be at a disadvantage when they arise. Just as a “skilled sailor” will calmly and efficiently handle a sudden storm, a skilled team member will manage unforeseen software production issues more efficiently than those who have never dealt with such issues or dismissed them as impossible.

While I dislike dealing with layoffs or evacuations due to forest fires, facing these challenges has made me more resilient. Organizations that run software systems should implement mechanisms to help team members learn from unforeseen software issues. Ignoring the possibility of such issues will leave organizations unprepared when they occur.

One mechanism is to implement a Correct of Errors (CoE) process to document and share learnings from unforeseen software issues, enhancing team members' skills. Another approach is to perform Gameday testing, exposing team members to issues in a lower-risk environment. Additionally, organizations should seek candidates with experience in handling unforeseen software issues to increase organizational resilience.

No matter which mechanism your organization chooses, it will be better prepared to deal with future unforeseen software issues than those that ignore or downplay the likelihood of such issues.

P.S. To my fellow job seekers: please take care of yourselves and stay resilient!