Comment by hinkley

I have this conversation at work. Team leads are Pollyanna types. Nobody wants to complain to an over-confidently happy person.

Meanwhile, if a tool we use or code I wrote is frustrating to use, I call a spade a spade. So then people open up about other stuff that bugs them. I hear everyone's fears and frustrations. I hear how bits of the code make people feel stupid. On other jobs I've gone out of my way to fix these problems. Often this doesn't impress your bosses (especially the bad ones) but it gets you plenty of respect from your peers and subordinates.

This particular system is such a Gordeon Knot that it's taken me years to see daylight. It's almost time for a new job and the code has just gotten to a place I wish it had been in on day 1.