• For problems related to environment setup, trying to accomplish the same thing on two computers can help identify disparities caused by the environment and not the code itself.
• If you are blocked when trying to solve your problem, define timebox how long you will continue attempting to address the problem before changing your approach.
  • Every half-hour/hour ask yourself "Have I made progress in the last period?" If the answer is no, define a time limit before reassessing your next steps

• Identify the cause of the problem
  • 5 whys
• List potential solutions
• Investigate potential sources of similar problems
• Address the additional sources of risk

Goals

• Reduce incident duration
  • Identify the cause of the problem more rapidly
• Reduce incident cost
• Reduce the number of people involved

• Define the incident owner
• Define the incident secretary/communicator
• Create and document
  • Summary
  • Observations (link to metrics dashboards with absolute timestamps as much as possible)
    • Screenshots
      • Who took the screenshot
      • Link to get the graph/data
      • Associated conclusions
    • Links to logs
  • Hypotheses/theories
    • Who made them
    • When
    • If they have been validated/invalidated
  • The actions taken
    • By whom
    • If it had the desired effect
  • etc.
• In the situation where an incident has been caused by the introduction of a code regression, revert the change and deploy as soon as possible
• Start by reducing/relieving the impact of the incident before searching for a root cause
• Use multiple data sources when data sources do not agree
• Diagram all the implicated systems and the relationship to one another in order to identify the potential locations where the problem might be
• Test your hypotheses to verify if they hold or not
• Develop a procedure over time that can be followed to diagnose similar issues

• Write down a list of improvement suggestions in order for the incident not to reproduce itself in the future or to lessen its impact

• Once the incident is completed, have a summary of the conclusions at the top of the document with a link to the sections in the document explaining the rationale behind the conclusions

Trigger

Every year, either at the beginning or end of the year.

Duration

A few hours spread over the course of a few days.

Steps

• Review year according to various facets
• Plan the next year according to the same facets

Notes

• I use a mind map software to do my yearly review and plan.

References

• https://alexvermeer.com/8760hours/
• https://chrisguillebeau.com/how-to-conduct-your-own-annual-review
• https://www.anthonyjcampbell.com/blog/8760-hours

Trigger

Every month, either at the beginning or end of the month.

Duration

30 minutes.

Steps

• Review what was planned for the month
• Provide feedback related to the plan
• Review yearly plan and align
• Plan next month

Notes

• I use a text editor, such as VS Code, to write my monthly reviews.