- What were your reflections from the video?
That video reminded me that I have a limited view on the world, just my slice of perspective with a lot of assumptions I am not aware of. The example from the video of talking through who you think will use your design is a great way of highlighting these assumptions, and coming up with more fleshed out and balanced creations.
- In what ways have you examined your implicit biases before coming to Turing?
My experience in sales brought to the surface some uncomfortable realities of the implicit biases I hold in my subconscious. In my interactions with clients their speech patterns, the way they dress, their race, their gender, and their age all contributed to an internal formulation of how likely they were to make a purchase. This experience taught me that regardless of my intentions, there are bound to be subconscious biases that are my responsibility to deliberately counteract.
- What kind of software do you imagine building in the future? How will understanding biases (or avoiding understanding biases) impact your products?
I don’t have any specific ideas yet without being familiar with the concept, however I imagine myself building software that makes people’s lives easier in some way. Deliberately finding ways to work around subconscious biases can make your product more universal, and get a broader set of ideas you might not have otherwise considered. A simple example I’m thinking about at this moment is some type of program that takes it as a given to read things right to left, might need to include a way to orient itself and adapt based on the information it’s given. Avoiding understanding biases will lead to a limited code that caters to only a specific demographic and would mean less perspective and input for a better code.
- When you consider the way you move through the world, what elements of your identity are you most aware of on a daily basis?
Moving through the world on the day to day as I walk around or carefully consider what activities I would engage in or forgo I am most aware of being physically disabled, AFAB, white, and autistic.
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What strengths does your identity give you? How will you utilize those at Turing?
I am approachable by most people and being autistic serves as an automatic filter for those who do not wish to engage with neurodivergent brains, so people that form my circle of friends tend to be empathetic and caring individuals who would listen if I had something to say and will reciprocate to help me correct myself, and I value the perspective and input of others. I plan to use these aspects of myself to be a more effective collaborator and get the most out of group conversations. I work hard to make sure everybody is comfortable and do not tolerate keeping toxicity in my group of friends that will drive people away. I understand that being an attractive white femme person means that there are people seeking my approval that are more likely to listen to me if I voice my disdain at what they’ve said. Because of this, it is extremely important that I not be complicit if I know something is wrong. Even something simple like a flat “what an odd thing to say” with the collective criticism of a group or asking someone to explain why they think a joke made in poor taste is funny can have a profound impact on their likelihood to repeat the behavior. I like to think that I have the ability to positively impact people’s mindset and behavior as well as being an example at times of what not to do.
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How do you think you could value the identies of those around you to bring out their strengths at Turing? Has there been a time where you were able to advocate or include people around you?
Pairing for a project is a good way to get somebody else’s perspective, as well as asking them about their ideas on a plan for the outline of a project before it’s started. I have also been learning to circle back to what someone said in group conversation by saying “Hey (name), what were you saying earlier about (sentence that got cut off)?” for collaboration. I have had to learn to deliberately override my compulsions to “one up” people and other pointless, conversationally destructive habits that discourage people from sharing. I’ve learned the key in collaborative projects is getting the most information possible in the shared pool of knowledge to make the most well informed decisions, so ensuring everybody feels comfortable and safe, standing up for others in conversation, and making sure everybody is heard is extremely important. This way we can bring out everyone’s strengths to work with and teach others. To keep people encouraged to share their ideas I think it’s important to say things to help them feel wanted and valued like “wow I hadn’t even considered that, that’s a really good idea!” or “you have a really cool thought process on this, I appreciate you sharing”. Actively growing this skill and using this combination of coaxing, advocating, and encouragement has helped people in group conversations that normally get talked over to then hold the attention of the group and get a chance to say meaningful things.
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How will your strengths impact you as a teammate? What will you bring to your cohort?
As a teammate I bring people closer together, lift barriers and kick start the free flow exchange of ideas. Each job I’ve worked at the turnover rate decreased when I got hired. Being as approachable as I am and often being the first to be vulnerable opens the doorway for others to feel ok to also reach out and ask for help free of judgement, which is crucial for software development in general and also for learning new concepts where each person is going to be at varying levels of understanding on different concepts and collaboration is necessary. I also find I am the initiator a lot of the time and help get plans started.