29 June 2011
TweetProbably one of the last things a person may associate together is a software developer and a weightlifter (there are exceptions). However there are techniques in weight lifting that I believe can be applied to a software developer’s regime to enhance performance. I’m not talking about steroids although caffeine is probably the closest thing to steroids for a developer. I’m talking about periodization.
Periodization is a weight lifting system that’s purpose is to prevent a lifter’s strength gains from leveling off or plateauing. Plateauing often happens if a lifter uses the same training routine for an extended period of time (same exercises at the same targeted number of reps). The lifters muscles will adapt to the routine causing strength gains to level off. Therefore strength experts recommend periodic mixing the routine up every month or so to prevent adaptation and achieve peak performance. For example the book Complete Conditioning for Football by Michael J. Arthur and Bryan L. Bailey recommends alternating between routines focusing on increasing muscle size consisting of exercises with 10 reps for 3 sets with 1 min rest increments and muscle strengthening exercises consisting of 5 reps for 3 sets at higher weights followed by a peak phase of sets of 4, 3, and 2 reps each at very high weights just prior to the start of camp. The transitions between periods are often pretty rough as muscles need to adapt to the addition loads or intensities. So you can count on being pretty sore for the first week or so. However despite the discomfort this is type of program is backed by extensive research to enhance performance by allowing a lifter to experience more continuous improvements in strength. But could these same principals be applied to mental activities?
After a couple of days of doing any repetitive cognitive activity you are going to get bored and your desire to do that activity will decrease. Likewise so will your performance doing that activity. For a software developer this could be writing SQL queries, working on front end gui components, or name your favorite framework here that dictates that you code in a specific way. In time these activities become boring or we simply stop getting better at doing them… we plateau. Trying a new framework or area of the system to develop on is often painful at first as everything is new and you can’t make assumptions about how things work. However after some time you start to learn and things get easier. But we didn’t become a stronger developer we just increase our breadth of knowledge right? Well not always. Say you’re a hot shot SOA developer that can code up web services and database persistence in your sleep. However even though you’re good at what you do every assignment you get starts looking the same. But you look at the guy in the cube next door who does front end work which looks interesting. So you ask your boss if you can take a 3 – 4 month stint doing front end development with browser related technologies like HTML and JavaScript. You gain proficiency in the technology and soon you can code up a web page from scratch. Then you return to doing the SOA stuff. Well after doing all that front end coding you realize that the service that you’ve just started designing could be structured in a way that the front end developer could plug the data right into the GUI without having to manipulate it first. Well now due to your new knowledge of front end development you’ve actually become a better SOA developer. You have broken through a plateau.
So how can you implement such a program? First its sounds like a hard sell to take someone who’s a rock star at one thing and put them in foreign part of the system. Who’s going to cover for the SOA rock star while he’s out experimenting in GUI land? Sometimes it’s surprising to see who steps up when the resident rock star is out. In the end the organization benefits from improved performance from its people as well as some knowledge redundancy that can come in handy if the department experiences some churn. So in those terms it’s really a win-win. What are the appropriate period lengths? As a general rule it takes roughly 3 – 4 months working with a technology on a daily basis to get a sense of it. I’m talking in the general sense not in a mastery sort of way but clearly beyond the hello world stage. This is generally when most developers can begin to apply the technology without needing guidance from someone already competent in the technology. This is however the level of understanding that gets you the most bang for your buck. Having a general understanding of a technology allows you to be conversational with other developers and incorporate that knowledge into your designs of a complimentary technology effectively.
So be wary when you think you’re at your peak. You could just be standing on one of many plateaus. Change things up or you might find your development muscles have atrophied!