Sorry 1x engineer, we're not all equally capable

June 13th 2024 | ~ 4 minute read

Note: Before I even start, you should know I have no personal grudge with the person who wrote the original piece. This is just me explaining where I disagree with them.

Introduction

I was searching around the web one day and I came across a rather lovely little website called the 1x.engineer.

If you haven't read what it has to say I suggest you do so as I won't be restating any of it here. Well, except this curious little statement:

Believes that everyone in the room is equally as smart and capable as they are.

1x engineer

To be fair, I totally get the point this statement is probably trying to make. In a healthy work environment it's not good to focus too much on our individual differences when we're supposed to hone our teamwork. I believe that the person who wrote this has their heart in the right place. Yet, I have a problem with it. It just isn't true.

Job titles exist for a reason

When we eliminate the corporate cruft that permeates much of the for profit branch of software development, we find that job titles like junior, intermediate and senior exist for a reason. What are they if not a direct admission that yes, we indeed possess different levels of proficiency and capability in our work? A task given to a junior engineer will, by necessity, be less demanding than one given to an intermediate one, and that one will, again by necessity, be less demanding than a task given to a senior. Why? Because these titles describe a different set of capabilities in a person who owns them. You expect a junior engineer to need guidance as they navigate around the requirements of a job given to them. That's not to say the work they do isn't valuable, it most certainly is, but I guarantee you that same task would be done faster and better by an engineer with a few more years under their belt. What separates them is experience, better intuition and crucially, knowledge. A more senior engineer has invested a lot more time and effort into acquiring their skills. All this serves to widen the gap between the two.

Competition is good actually

Now, I might be reading too much into it, but I think there's an unstated assumption made in the statement above. We're all equally capable, and if we're not, others shouldn't flaunt their perceived superiority, we shouldn't compete. While excessively reminding others that you're better than them is paramount to a large ego and insecurity, competition in the workplace, especially in software, is sometimes desirable. Nothing drives novel solutions to problems quite like it. When two or more people compete on a shared goal, they're motivated to bring out quality solutions, doubly so if the problem is hard or novel. Of course, this is only good as long as the competition is done in good spirit. Nobody should be punished for losing or otherwise underdelivering. You'd be surprised of the results that can arise from a good competition between coworkers.

Being an overachiever is a burden too

On the other side of the spectrum, when you consistently show that you're especially capable, others will try to take advantage of that to their benefit. Your employer will expect more from you, but will seldom reward your increased effort. Coworkers will naturally gravitate towards you for advice and if you're a team player, you'll give it to them. And you'll do all that while also continuously staying on top of your own game. All this, is a burden and a sometimes unwelcome one, but you'll persevere, because that's the right thing to do.

Conclusion

I must repeat that I have no qualms with the people behind 1x engineer. In fact I mostly agree with the things they said. I just think we should be careful with out words as to not distort reality for the sake of avoiding bringing out people's worst impulses. There's gotta be a better way. In fact here's my take on rephrasing this statement in a way I feel stays true to its original intent:

Even though our capabilities may be different, a 1x engineer believes that everyone can bring value to the team.

And with that, I leave you to come up with your own takeaway. I can be wrong. I'm only human too.