Tag Archives: career

Get the top rating in your next performance review with this one weird trick

Posted on April 25, 2023 by Sheldon "Don" Sandbekkhaug

Google changed its performance review system, and chaos was everywhere. The new system was called GRAD (Googler Reviews and Development), and after it was announced, there was a boatload of questions. ICs asked their managers, managers asked their directors, directors … Continue reading →

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How to NOT worry about layoffs

Posted on March 22, 2023 by Sheldon "Don" Sandbekkhaug

Recently, Microsoft laid off 10,000 employees. Facebook lost 11,000. Not to be outdone, Google reduced its workforce by 12,000. Overall, in the first two months of 2023, over 120,000 tech employees were laid off, including every sector and every size … Continue reading →

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100 Things I’ve Learned as a Software Engineer at Google

Posted on December 6, 2022 by Sheldon "Don" Sandbekkhaug

It’s amazing to look back over the past seven years. When I first stared this blog, I was a CS student at UT. 99 blog posts later, I’m a software engineer and tech lead at Google. I don’t have everything … Continue reading →

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The One Thing You Need to Understand Before You Write a Resume

Posted on November 26, 2022 by Sheldon "Don" Sandbekkhaug

Recruiters are busy. With thousands of engineers being laid off from Twitter, Amazon, and Meta, recruiters have boatloads of candidates to choose from. It’s normal for over 200 people to apply for each software development position. A recruiter has the … Continue reading →

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Three Things You Must Do When Mentoring Software Engineers

Posted on July 20, 2022 by Sheldon "Don" Sandbekkhaug

Mentoring other software engineers is one of my favorite parts of my job. Every software engineer ought to have an unbiased mentor to go to for career questions. Early in your career, you’re always the one asking questions. As you … Continue reading →

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