The Dev's Creed: Being Wrong is Essential

Hey there everyone. I'm going to go off script real quick at the beginning of this episode because this is something that's kind of interesting to me. I would say that it is definitely okay in life to be wrong. We're all going to be wrong. I mean, that's just how it is on this spinning blue dot. However, I would also posit that it's not all right to always stay wrong. And that dichotomy is sort of like a designer's creed. So today we're going to talk about what it means to be wrong and how to get better at not staying wrong because that process is definitely a skill. Thanks so much to 80,000 Hours for sponsoring this episode. If you're looking for a career path that can have a positive impact on the world, then stick around until after the episode because they just might be able to help you find your dream job for free. In today's world, we've somehow come to the conclusion that being wrong is like the worst possible thing that there is. Rather than admit that they made a mistake or weren't right about something, you'll hear politicians, celebrities, corporations just double down and entrench. It's actually gotten to the point that it's becoming

ingrained in our culture. And none of us, including myself, are immune to this. But I do think it's something that we have to unlearn to be better individuals and to be better designers. But you know, how do we do that? Well, first, I think we have to foster a place where it's actually safe to be wrong. This means that for any of you who are employers, managers, or team leads, it's essential to cultivate an environment where acknowledging a mistake is not only not punished, but is actually seen as healthy and positive. The easiest way to do this is when someone comes to you with a problem or has found that they're taking the wrong path in their work, simply stopping for a moment and saying to them something like, "Okay, talk me through the issue and then let's see if we can figure it out together." Statements like this shows that it's safe for people to bring problems to you, gets your employees back on track and being productive faster, and creates an easy way for you as a senior person to pass along knowledge to people newer in the industry. Of course, sometimes you won't be able to help, but that's okay, too. Because if you can't help, the best move is always trying to point them to someone who can. Communication

is essential in this industry as it kind of is in every industry. And James has told me that he's seen so many studios grind to a halt because someone doesn't know who to turn to when they run into a roadblock. So again, as a manager or a senior employee who would know the studio well, try to disseminate that information where you can. And show the newer folks the other departments while encouraging them to reach out when they have an issue. Now, I know that many of you are probably saying, "Yeah, but I don't have time to fix everyone else's issues. I have too much on my plate already." Believe me, I 1,000% hear you. Even on the YouTube side of things, that is a real concern. But again, when James and I were talking about this kind of thing, even though he sometimes feels like he's drowning in the video game industry, he also told me that a number of times what actually saves him is when he can train his junior employees to the point where they can step up and catch the things that inevitably fall through the cracks for him. And really, the only way to do that in the games industry or on YouTube or anywhere, really, is to work with your employees and also to admit when you've missed something. But that, of course, is easy to say and harder to do. Heck, some of you might

even remember a video we did a while back called Fail Faster. It's kind of our motto over here and we've referenced it a bunch. Well, in order to actually do that, you first have to be willing to be wrong. And believe me, I know this can be a scary proposition. If you're a leader on a project, it's easy to think people will lose respect for you if you admit to making mistakes. And as a new employee, it can feel like everyone will think you're a failure if you have to ask for help or confess to screwing up. And even when people try to make an environment feel safe to do this, it's still really hard. But I think there's ways that we can all get better at it. For instance, if you're just starting out, know this, no good boss anyway expects you to be perfect 100% of the time. They know you've got things to learn and growing to do. So with that in mind, if you don't admit your mistakes, if you just try to tough your way through them or hope that no one else notices, well, sooner or later someone is going to find out. Then your boss will be, honestly with reason, upset. You've thrown off their timelines. You've gated other people. You've thrown

a wrench into the giant works that it's their job to maintain. In short, you've made their life a lot tougher. But if you actually take your problems to them when they occur and say something like, "Hey, this idea I thought was actually really brilliant turned out not to be and now I'm a few days behind." If they are a good boss, they can work around that and try to do things like adjust the schedule or at least anticipate what ripples it might cause in the project. Truthfully, this is way less work for them than a problem brewing under the surface that they don't know about. Also, if you talk to your boss about your mistakes, they'll probably spend at least a little time helping you work them out. And in that process, they'll get to know you and you won't just be like junior designer eight anymore. And here's a kind of sad but really interesting truth. Time spent like that actually goes way further toward getting the assignments and the promotions you want than being the person who never pops up on the radar. On the other side, admitting you've made a mistake as a boss is also really tough. Maybe you already feel like an impostor. Maybe you've even asked yourself on occasion,

"Who the heck let me be in charge of people? Like what were they actually thinking?" Which makes it mortifying to do anything that might let people see through the disguise. In all honesty, I've found that if you are thinking like this, it probably means you're a better boss than you know. Second, everyone knows you make mistakes because spoiler alert, you are a human. Plus, you know, these people work under you, so they know when you screw up. Heck, they might even assign more of the company screw ups to you personally than you actually make because you're the piece of hierarchy that they see the most. But I've found if you admit your mistakes and sometimes even bring the folks around you in to help you see your way through them, that fosters a level of respect between you and your team. Because at the end of the day, they'll start to discover the intricacies of what your job actually is. Plus, a nice added bonus could be they'll stop blaming you for the things that weren't actually your fault as they learn to actually trust you to tell them when you've messed something up. And even if you've gotten past your imposter syndrome or heck never experienced any of that at all, this holds just as true. People respect people for their competence, but also understand that

that doesn't mean never making the wrong decision. It more means that you'll be trusted to get them out of that wrong decision as soon as you're aware of it. In game design specifically, this is important because you need to iterate. You rarely start with the perfect idea springing fully formed from your head after all. And you would not believe how many games James has seen that have been ruined because they fully committed to something that should have been called out as a mistake the very first time it was discussed in a meeting. So, before you ever get a line of code in place or have an art asset made, there are a lot of steps you can do to double-check your design if you are willing to accept its mistakes. First is in documents. Write your ideas down, sleep on them, then look at them the next day as if someone else handed them to you to evaluate. And really, you will be surprised how much if you're open to the idea that your ideas could be bad, you will catch at that point just by reading them over in that mindset. Second is talking your ideas over with folks. This can be either informal meetings or just chatting with other designers. Though, be sure to start the conversation off with something like, "I know things are

wrong in here, but I wanted your thoughts before I put too much more work into it." Statements like that give people that you're talking to permission to be critical. And finally, paper prototype. Have someone else run a playtest for you and observe. Then, just really listen to what people say. And be sure to internalize any confusion or criticism as much as any praise. Now, if you can accept your mistakes and also learn the right lessons from working through them, it still won't actually make you avoid being wrong in the future, but that's not the important part because you'll most certainly improve your design, be a better coworker for your whole team, and most importantly, you'll avoid staying wrong. And on that note of self-improvement, I think this week's sponsor can really help in that department because they don't want you to buy anything. They want to help you find a high-impact career. 80,000 Hours is a nonprofit whose goal is to help folks find fulfilling careers that have a strong social impact. And their work, based on 10 years of research with academics from Oxford University, can help you find a job that makes a positive difference in the world doing something that you love that also could help tackle some of the

largest problems facing humanity today. Now, truth be told, we've never had a sponsor quite like this before. So, we reached out and chatted with Bella over at 80,000 Hours to better understand their process and find out more about what their services were all about. And we learned they've got a ton of career research on their website for everyone to check out, lots of decision-making tools such as their 8-week career planning course, and their podcast which hosts unusually in-depth conversations with experts about how best to tackle pressing global problems. But really, what blew us away was their job board with just tons of listings that, based on all of their research, have the best chance of helping make the world we all live in a better place. And again, because they are a nonprofit that is philanthropically funded, there is no endgame gotcha mechanic or hidden paywalls or anything. All of their material is free, always. So, if that sounds like something you think would be helpful in your current job or in helping you find a new career that you can feel great about, then you should sign up for their free newsletter via the link below. Then to start, they'll send you an in-depth guide that takes you through all the steps in making the best career plan for you and your 80,000

working hours that, on average, you'll spend in your lifetime. Look, I know figuring out what you want to do with your life is not easy. It took me way too long, personally. But if you are feeling stuck or even just curious, then check out 80,000 Hours for yourself and see if they can help. A million big old thanks to Skyler Homes, Koyakoy, Joseph Blame, Dominic Valenciana, Casey Musgraves, Arclight Games, Angela Valenciana, and Ammar Zia Turk for being fantastic legendary patrons. Mhm.