Month: June 2014

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My favorite things about iOS 8 for developers

by bijansabet

My three favorite things about iOS8 for developers:

1. Open. Developers can now replace stock functions that were once locked into the OS. Keyboards and widgets in the notification system are important steps and show signs of a new Apple. 

2. Level playing field. iOS 8 Webkit allows all third party apps to have the same performance as Safari. This is huge. 

3. Data sharing. I’ve been carrying around a Nexus 5 as my second phone for some time now. I love how apps can share data. And now iOS 8 delivers a powerful system for sharing data and tools between applications.

This last point is a big deal. It has the opportunity to bring small pieces, loosely joined brilliance of the web to our mobile devices. 

Here’s a recent example. I’m a long time user of Evernote. Sadly it’s become bloated, slow and overly complex. I’m drawn to the simplicity and speed of Vesper.

But Evernote has an API that is supported in tons of 3rd party apps. Vesper doesn’t have that. Nor can you email content to Vesper. However, with iOS 8, the Vesper team can catch up in one release. That is magical. 

Apple announced a ton of other new products for developers at WWDC this week but these are my favorites.

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Be fearless

by bijansabet

Sam Altman’s tweet hit my feed this morning and one point in particular hit a nerve.

The last one: ‘don’t let conflict fester’ is the big one. My friend Jerry Colonna recently gave a leadership talk at a recent event we organized and brought home what it means to be fearless as a leader.

And being fearless means direct dealing in a respectful way and without personal attacks. 

Too often we try to avoid conflicts, simply hoping tomorrow will be better or frankly that there is only 10 fucking minutes left in this meeting. 

But conflict avoidance isn’t being fearless. It’s not fair to you, the person you are managing or to the rest of the team. I learned this the hard way. 

I had an easier time managing conflicts when I worked in startups than transitioning to a board member/investor. Getting the balance right of being a partner to the CEO/founders can be tricky even in the best of times. 

But Sam and Jerry are totally right. Get comfortable being respectfully direct and don’t let conflicts fester.

Be fearless.