Stepping into management is like moving from a high scoring shooting guard to a pass first point guard. Suddenly, your success isn’t defined by your individual “drive to the hoop” solo layups and jump shots, but by the tempo of the game and the quality of your assists.
My transition wasn’t a calculated career move; it was the classic “reluctant leader” trope. Much like Locke from Final Fantasy VI or Mat Cauthon from The Wheel of Time, I was an engineer who loved the physics of the game—debugging code and crafting logic, who was eventually tapped for leadership because I was “organized and communicative.”
What differs from IC to Manager? #
I started as a game developer, passionately crafting physics equations, debugging code, and dreaming up clever game logic. It was a blast! But fast forward a few years, and the company decided I was ripe for promotion. And just like that, I was a manager.
As an IC, I had my groove; just me, my code, and my coffee. Lots of coffee. As a manager? Suddenly, the stakes were different. It wasn’t just about me anymore, it was about the team. Success was now measured not in delivered features but in team spirit, strategy, and growth. At first, it felt like trading the thrill of scoring points for the quiet satisfaction of assisting my team to shine. And you know what? Over time, I realized I grew into it.
In a startup environment, the transition is particularly jarring. You are no longer responsible for a single stream of work, you are managing a high concurrency system with multiple hats. Constant juggling between horizontal and vertical communication, deciding which fires to put out and which can smolder for a bit, guiding team members in their growth and career paths, handling conflicts, or championing the team’s needs and achievements to leadership. You’re expected to juggle like a seasoned circus performer. A manager’s worth is measured when they can bring impact to the company. Mastering soft skills like empathy, conflict resolution, and strategic thinking is a must for a manager to grow and make sure they are being seen.
Coding or no coding, that is the question #
Like I said before, I miss my coding days. Nothing beats the satisfaction of building something from scratch. The reality being a manager though, your time would be spent more on the people instead of the code itself. Meetings and 1 on 1 are the constants, instead of the variables. In most cases, growing as a manager means broader scope, more responsibility, and more influence; eventually reaching executives’ position. This is where the trap lies. When you step on the managerial ladder, your focus will be on business impact, team building, and growing influence. While on the other hand, as engineering manager, you are expected to excel at engineering!! At first, it’s still manageable, but slowly when the company grows, or you grow, it became harder and harder to find the time to code again.
In my case, I still dabbled in technical meetings, PRs and designing system architecture. This allows me to stay connected with the codebase and keeping up with the product development. Spoiler ahead: it’s not enough. The reality is it’s easy to lose your coding groove. Early on, I found myself lagging behind, struggling with new features, new codes, and submitting PRs that were embarrassingly sloppy. Cue existential crisis: “Am I still an engineer at heart?”. With slow realization, I knew that I started to be left behind.
Then came mistake number two, I code again as a manager. You know where it goes wrong? Yes, trying to code like a full on player-coach! Bad idea. Being a manager and programmer means more working time. I committed more time to code new feature while growing and coaching the team. The result was disastrous, juggling coding and managerial tasks not only burned me out but slowed the team’s progress. It took a while until I can find the balance again.
Lesson learned, I’m not here to score the three pointers, I’m here to assist. I need to be like Steve Nash. The top priority is passing the ball managerial tasks. Neglecting that means failure, not only for me but for the team as well. I don’t need to always code. The sweet spot? Tackling occasional technical challenges that excite me performance tuning, bootstrapping new features, or fixing pesky bugs. And for staying sharp? Side projects are my sanctuary. I finally found the fun again.
Any regrets so far? #
Do I regret becoming a manager? Honestly? I don’t know. Sure, there have been moments of sleepless nights over decisions. But every challenge has shaped me to be a better person of myself. The learning curves, the laughter shared over coffee breaks, and the pride in watching my team flourish far outweigh any drawbacks. If I were offered a chance to rewind time, would I choose this path again? Probably. As a favorite character of mine once said, “What’s life like if you don’t take a chance now and then?”.