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by learninglisp 6498 days ago
Hey, it's the holistic answer to the "how to". What, should I have broken it down into 12 steps?

To sum it up: let him solve problems his own way. Let him develop tools/abstractions that help him hide the sort of details and menial tasks that sap his strength. Force him to get up and go exercise or relax. Don't hold a nebulous infinishable to-do list over his head to guilt trip him-- he will come down off of his creative high and beat himself up for being irresonsible and may even shut down emotionally. Allow him to relate to people one at a time-- a hike with only one of the children, dates and activities without a big crowd. Don't take it personally when he absolutely dreads doing activities you think are "fun". Go stand by his desk until he gets that nagging little task done. Tell him things like, "if you don't get anything else done today, please look into x; it's really important to me." And no, he doesn't need all of a June Cleaver, a secretary, and a personal accountant-- he does need someone to play the part of a "coach", though. And someone that can organize some of the pesky details into something he can act on can be critical to this guy getting anything done.
2 comments
edw519 6498 days ago
He loves direct answers to simple questions.

Thank you.

(He also easily grasps difficult obscure concepts while missing the obvious if a subtle shift in perception is needed.)

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edw519 6498 days ago
Don't hold a nebulous infinishable to-do list over his head to guilt trip him-- he will come down off of his creative high and beat himself up for being irresonsible and may even shut down emotionally.

Wow, I didn't even notice this one the first read. It's EXACTLY what I'm going through right now.

It's a test of wills. I'm in the middle of a huge rewrite of a critical app while they insist on bombarding me with minutia (digital whining) every single day. For the first time ever (with them), I refuse. "Live with it until after Labor Day; I'm busy." Stay tuned...

(Anyone looking for a good programmer?)

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mrtron 6498 days ago
I thought you were on your own already - or is this a contract?

Dealing with people is difficult - perhaps you could setup some sort of emailing ticket system where the minutia can go into queue. This way it will not interrupt your important rewrite or other pressing matters.

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edw519 6498 days ago
It's a contract.

Things change rapidly and these people understand how well some business problems can be addressed with technology. They also have a pretty good feel for what it will take. Their biggest problem is that they want everything now.

I have a habit of almost always saying "yes". But sometimes you just gotta say no. Not easy for anyone.

Hopefully, once I get this thing into production, I can go back to normal chaos mode :-)

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