[Denzel]

Yes, this is fantastic advice. The most effective senior engineers on my team almost always create what’s called a “start doc”. Written at a high level, the doc discusses background context, enumerates possible solutions with a pro/con list for each, and records open questions and out-of-scope issues. They’re usually only 1-3 page gdocs.

The most important part is that it opens up discussion to the team. Everyone is able to read, comment, and offer up improvements or get clarity on questions they have. After a few rounds a feedback and revision — usually 2-3 days — a decision is made and the engineer goes off to break out a few tickets and start the work.

It’s async, collaborative, efficient, visible, and just a generally pleasurable process as both an individual and teammate.