We’re gearing up for a team-wide retreat in NYC in mid-October. We’ll have 30+ people from all over the country (and a few from outside the US) coming in for a few days of team bonding and various activities. The planning is both exciting and challenging – we’re trying to balance out having enough planned activities vs. giving people the space and room to hang out with each other. The primary goal of the retreat […]
“What Stoics discover, though, is that willpower is like muscle power: The more they exercise their muscles, the stronger they get, and the more they exercise their will, the stronger it gets. Indeed, by practicing Stoic self-denial techniques over a long period, Stoics can transform themselves into individuals remarkable for their courage and self-control.” (William B. Irvine, A Guide to the Good Life) I came across this highlight the other day and made a mental […]
It’s been a little over a year since my last update. In that time, there’s been a lot of changes to the financial side of my life. The biggest factor has been the purchase of a 2nd home, which has introduced all kinds of costs. Also, my stock portfolio, heavily concentrated in growth tech stocks, took a huge hit through the first half of this year, wiping out most of my gains from 2021. You […]
Reflecting on the past few months, the most important change at Barrel was having our Director of Software Engineering report to our Chief Experience Officer Lucas Ballasy, away from our Chief Technology Officer Wes Turner, consolidating all team production functions under Lucas’s supervision as the Experience team. The level of cohesion has improved greatly, and I feel like the different disciplines are starting to get on the same page with daily stand-ups and increased knowledge […]