Weeknotes #1: in which we begin again

Inspired by this post on weeknotes (h/t Justin Duke), I’ve decided to try the concept out myself. I’ve been doing something similar for awhile in one fashion or another: a monthly learning log or reading log. But I like the idea of a faster-cadence, lo-fi update on what I’m working on, thinking through, reading, etc. Work-work will probably be covered here in generalities, but heck, let’s try this out.

Here's my weeknotes for the week of March 24, 2019.

Project of the Day

I've been experimenting with different ways of trying to deal with all the bajillion irons in the fire at work, and one idea I'm testing out right now is a project of the day. Instead of having a laundry list of things to do on a particular day spread out across various different efforts (which are invariably more than a day's worth and just contribute to a feeling of chaos), I'm trying to focus on just ONE main thing that needs to happen each day, for a total of 5 main projects each week. If I'm done early, cool—start the next project on the list.

I do also need time to deal with the more reactionary items on the list, so along with the daily project I'm reserving set time in my daily schedule for:

• Answering emails
• Triaging bugs
• "Quick" items (whatever fits in the timebox: so I'm not randomized, but also not dragging small items along day after day and losing context / eating up more time in the long run)

Meetings still pose a challenge to focused time.

New Moon IDE theme

I recently started using Tania Rascia’s New Moon theme in VS Code, and I have to say it’s the perfect contrast level for me. I’d suggest checking it out if you like dark IDE themes but find pure-black backgrounds a bit wearing on the eyes!

Imposter syndrome

Having completely changed my career/role a year ago, I can confirm that no matter what I’m doing, I’ll probably always have imposter syndrome and/or feelings of inadequacy. This is freeing in its own way: running from it will not help. You can only do your best to work through it and focus on meeting what the project needs.

Reading

Technically these articles were read across March, rolling the (non-exhaustive) March reading log into these first weeknotes.

Web design and dev articles

• The WebAIM Million: the top million home pages have an average of 59.6 detectable errors.
• Fighting Uphill
• Survey of Web Accessibility Practitioners #2 Results: fascinating to note how the survey participant demographics compare to the general web profession population.
• Q&A With Léonie Watson, Accessibility Engineer and Director, TetraLogical
• Cache-Control for Civilians
• Canary in a Coal Mine: How Tech Provides Platforms for Hate
• Responsible JavaScript: Part I
• Your skip links are broken

Other interesting articles

• Different Types Of Meditation Change Different Areas Of The Brain, Study Finds
• The Hottest Chat App for Teens Is … Google Docs
• I’m Disabled (And Not Some Other Word)
• How Much of the Internet Is Fake? Turns Out, a Lot of It, Actually.
• Keyboard [interaction design docs]: casually reading about keyboard patterns on Windows

Accessibility Camp Seattle

If you’re local to the Pacific NW, consider attending Accessibility Camp Seattle! Last year’s unconference felt like new friends coming together to share their experiences, learnings, and explorations in a low-pressure environment. This would be a great event whether you’re newly curious about accessibility, or if you’re always open to learning more. Thinking of what I might suggest for a session… 🤔