You Can't Say You Don't Know

"Hey Mauro, do you think this implementation can be done headless?"

We're in a pre-sale call with about 3 people and I'm one of the devs helping out with the initial proposal. As the Product Manager patiently waits for my response, a little voice in the back of my mind speaks up.

"You don't know what headless means, do you?"

Well of course I don't. I've heard of it. I've tried in the past to get the gist of it through Googling, but it just gave me pretty abstract, market-y explanations of why it's so great and flexible... without telling me much of how it's implemented. I need to tell them I don't know what it actua-

"Are you insane?! You can't say that!!"

Oh... this is a new thought. Why can't I?

You can't say you don't know

Oh wooow. It's the ol' imposter syndrome problem. I haven't run into it in a while.

A few weeks ago I got promoted to Senior (Hurray!). And while neither the work I was doing or the responsibilities I already had changed, I have noticed a small shift in the expectations I had for myself.

Basically, I found out I have a specific image of what a Senior "should" know. How one "should" act. How they "should" be. And having to admit you don't match that silly ideal is what causes the "you're an imposter" idea in your head.

Which also brings up this little demonic scared voice in my head that screams at me to make sure NoBOdY SHoULd fINd OUt yOu doN't KnOw.

Which is dumb and silly in our field. Information is always a few clicks away. If I don't know something, I know that dedicating a bit of time to googling and understanding it is pretty quick and easy.

So with a small sigh, I ignore the voice, smile and say:

I'm sorry, I'm not sure. I'd have to look into it a bit more. Can I get you an answer this afternoon or even tomorrow?

The project manager, God bless her, of course said ~NO and demoted me to Janitor the next day~ yes, there would be no problem and smiled back ☺️.

And that was that. I spent some time that afternoon understanding what headless was about and got back to her later. And the great news is, I only had to learn what headless was once!

(Don't get me wrong, actually implementing it is another story 😅)

Hoping this serves as a reminder for those who might have similar feelings. Whether it's from a new promotion, having switched roles or even going through their first tech job.

The faster and more often you say you don't know, the less you have to go through it.

Have a great Friday.