How I think, as a manager
As a fitting complement to Waldo’s entry I thought I would offer up a view from the other side, as it were. I’ve been managing software projects for years and suffered my share of management experiences described in Paul Graham’s article.
Software development is creative and structured. You ruminate about the problem and test a variety of solutions until a good match emerges. Few people can do this while fielding interruptions nor do many composers do their best work while balancing life obligations. Software development requires devoted attention.
Management is less creative and far less structured. You operate a general plan and re-route as circumstances dictate. Good managers know when to interrupt software development while bad managers pull the fire alarm at every bump in the road.
I like to think of management as being a traffic officer. Multiple streams of potential decisions bombard me and I have to decide whether they warrant the cost of interrupting developers, finance officers and other business partners. I believe a good manager estimates the opportunity cost of conversations and meetings.