16 Jun 2026 #coding
While a coder obsesses over syntax:
- Adding endless abstractions
- Micro-optimizing code nobody touches
- Building 100% reusable components no one will reuse
A street-smart coder:
#1. Writes the right code at the right time. Starting massive refactorings just because “people recommend it online” isn’t always wise.
#2. Understands there’s no perfect code, only tradeoffs.
Not every piece of code needs to scale or be perfectly clean.
Not every project needs Domain Driven Design, microservices, or the latest buzzwords.
Everything is a tradeoff.
#3. Stays detached from their code.
Coding isn’t a solo sport.
Prefer simple, consistent code others can inherit.
It’s a team sport: code for other humans.
#4. Speaks the right lingo with the right people.
Not everyone involved in a project cares about the same details.
Be an interpreter between technical and business people.
Want to go deeper? Street-Smart Coding Manifesto shows how to stand out with more than syntax. Because real impact comes from skills outside your IDE.
15 Jun 2026 #coding #books
When I started coding, I thought my only job was writing code. And I was wrong.
I went to the extreme, obsessing over syntax and lines of code.
I didn’t want to attend meetings, answer my phone, or reply to emails.
Those were the days I had a cubicle.
After trial and error, I realized code neither saved me nor made me stand out.
It was always something beyond symbols on text files.
That’s why I’m writing this book: the prequel to Street-Smart Coding.
It’s my case against obsessing over syntax to stand out.
A manifesto for mastering the skills that create real impact.
I’m calling it: Street-Smart Coding Manifesto.
This one is about the why, while Street-Smart Coding is about the how.
It’s for junior and intermediate coders—and my younger self—who want to create impact beyond code.
A writing and marketing experiment
Street-Smart Coding was a test on persistence.
10 Surprisingly Simple Ideas That Changed My Life taught me about promotion.
Here’s what I’m doing differently:
#1. Hands first, then computer.
Following one lesson from Steal Like An Artist, this book started with pen and paper.
I used my 10-idea lists to plan it and sticky notes to outline it.
#2. Marketing from day 1.
“People will come” isn’t 100% true.
Instead of waiting for a first draft, I’m announcing it early:
like I did in past Friday Links and now in this post.
#3. The Mini Book W technique.
Unlike Street-Smart Coding, this isn’t a “choose your own adventure” book, but a “start to finish” book.
To outline it, I’m using the W technique from Chris Stanley’s Mini Book Model.
One chapter to answer what, why, and how to become a street-smart coder.
#4. Succinct writing.
Stealing Derek Siver’s writing style, I’m planning chapters to be short and self-contained.
Each chapter covers one core idea, not long textbook lessons.
This is a short and actionable you can finish over coffee.
Preorder Street-Smart Coding Manifesto starting at just $1 and start mastering the skills that will set you apart, giving you confidence and impact beyond code. If you’d like to support the work, contribute $5 or more and I’ll thank you in the Acknowledgments.
14 Jun 2026 #writing #bookwriting
If you write a blog consistently, you already have a book.
Here’s how to make your blog a book:
- Find your favorite and most popular posts.
- Group them by subject or year.
- Remove links, CTAs, stock photos…
- Name your book after your blog.
Writing a book from your posts isn’t cheating.
Derek Sivers recommends that strategy.
Nicolas Cole wrote Quora Best Answers of 2015.
Seth Godin wrote Small Is the New Big and Whatcha Gonna Do with That Duck?
Wouter turned Brain Baking into a book.
If they did it, so can we.
Books have longer lifespans than posts.
We’re still reading The Odyssey, The Bible, and Meditations.
That’s the best way to preserve our stories and ideas.
If asking for a coffee feels uncomfortable, point readers to your books instead.
If you’re curious, I’m documenting my life in books—you can find them here.
13 Jun 2026 #misc
It started as an email to 7 friends. Now it’s part of the Library of Congress.
In 2024, Maria celebrated The Marginalian 18th anniversary, where she writes to figure out life.
I discovered Maria and her blog, thanks to an interview with David Perell.
It’s a shame I didn’t know about her work before.
Here are five lessons I learned from that interview:
Have a daily practice
When she was asked about why she reads and keeps a diary,
I’m very regulated by having a daily practice
Have a daily creative routine.
Journaling, blogging, doodling…
Not just to improve your craft, but to stay emotional and mentally healthy.
It’s not a surprise that writing saved me from burnout.
Doing something I loved every day helped me recover.
Walk!
I always say I’ve written almost everything on foot and then what I do at the keyboard is transcription.
Walking beats writer’s block.
Makes you take distance from work.
Gives time to think.
Since last month, I’ve been taking walks every day.
I’ve noticed the difference in my mood and creativity.
I take pen and paper with me. Most walks end with a post idea.
Maybe it’s breathing fresh air?
Sleep on it
When they were talking about scientists being artists too, she said,
A few months before my 40th birthday, per my need of a daily practice, I decided to start taking my favorite 19th century ornithological books and every night I would pick a drawing of a bird and read the ornithological description of the bird and I would sleep. And then in the morning, I would take certain words would kind of bubble up and I would make these little poems and koans over the artwork.
I also like feeding my brain and then doing something else.
I’ve tried doing it before bed, but it makes my brain rush with ideas when I should be sleeping.
Always have something to write on.
Maybe a notebook next to your bed or your phone with red filters on.
Like walking, sleeping gives our brain time to think.
AI doesn’t suffer
AI will never write the great American poem, the great French poem, because it hasn’t suffered. I mean AI has not the capacity to suffer…And without suffering, what kind of true art can there be?
If AI can do it in minutes, it’s not special.
Share personal stories.
Put your taste.
Follow your curiosities.
Make it unusual.
Be human.
Don’t call it content
We have reduced creative work, cultural matter to what we call “content” which presumes a container and in a way it’s an accurate description because the container is advertising
I declare myself guilty of calling it content.
I’m also guilty of making things just to stay consistent, feeding the container for a few moments of attention.
Content makes us the product and unpaid workers.
12 Jun 2026 #mondaylinks
Hey there.
I’m writing the prequel of Street-Smart Coding.
This book is my case against obsessing over syntax to stand out as a coder.
I’m writing it for my younger me who believed his only job was to write code. Younger me needed to learn that code alone won’t save him or make him stand out.
It’s a manifesto for mastering the skills that create real impact. That’s why I’m calling it Street-Smart Coding Manifesto. It’s about the why, while Street-Smart Coding is about the how.
You can preorder your copy today.
As usual, here are 4 links I thought were worth sharing this week:
#1. Here’s Shopify’s deep dive on how they handle inventory reservations (13min), replacing Redis with MySQL.
#2. One lesson coding has to learn from aviation: automation-induced complacency. It means, the better the autopilot, the worse the pilot (2min). That’s what’s happening with AI.
#3. Product managers exist because we coders speak another language. That makes the relationship dysfunctional. But here’s a guide on working well with them (11min).
#4. Japan is a wild, fascinating place. Here are 28 things they do differently (19min).
And in case you missed it, last week I shared on dev.to these 12 hard truths about coding (4min) and, speaking of aviation, some time ago, I wrote about what SWE should learn from aviation (2min).
(Bzzz…Radio voice) This email was brought to you by… Preorder your digital copy of Street-Smart Coding Manifesto—starting at just $1—and learn how to stand out by mastering skills beyond syntax. If you’d like to support the work, contribute $5 or more and I’ll thank you in the Acknowledgments.
See you next time,
Cesar