Tuesday
May192009
Test Rage
Tuesday, May 19, 2009 at 4:56AM
I've noticed that some testers have what I'm calling "test rage." It's like road rage, only it's triggered not by other drivers, but by programmers. The testers in question have a vision of how the world should work in their mind - right or wrong - and when something violates that model, they get really really angry.
Did you merge your code in the wrong place? Anger.
Did you comment on the wrong ticket? Anger.
Did you not reproduce my bug? Anger.
And I don't mean anger as is, "Gee... that's frustrating." I mean anger as in yelling, hitting your hand against your desk, etc... Silly stuff.
Just like with road rage, there seems to be an inability to empathize with the other point of view or to recognize that the only people affected by your rage are you and those around you. And that's normally not the people who are the objects of your rage, it's your fellow testers!
So, if you're a test rage sufferer, try to find some simple exercises that can help calm you down. If you need help, ask for it. The person sitting next to you is likely more than willing to help if they can.
Did you merge your code in the wrong place? Anger.
Did you comment on the wrong ticket? Anger.
Did you not reproduce my bug? Anger.
And I don't mean anger as is, "Gee... that's frustrating." I mean anger as in yelling, hitting your hand against your desk, etc... Silly stuff.
Just like with road rage, there seems to be an inability to empathize with the other point of view or to recognize that the only people affected by your rage are you and those around you. And that's normally not the people who are the objects of your rage, it's your fellow testers!
So, if you're a test rage sufferer, try to find some simple exercises that can help calm you down. If you need help, ask for it. The person sitting next to you is likely more than willing to help if they can.
Reader Comments (2)
Nice Topic Mike and I completely agree with you. I had one lead who was suffering from "Test rage", he used to crib more than test...lucky for me I was in his team for a very short time.
-Sharath.B
I have to confess that in my youth, I did have a few test rage moments. It wasn't that I always let of steam, but if the pressure was on.....
Fortunately, time has taught me some wisdom and I'm more zen about the whole thing.