1. I am a team leader, the first level of line mgmt in this organisation

2. The entire 10 years I have been here. Prior to that, I was head of software (team of 4) at a small startup for 4 years and as an IC the 3 years before that.

3. My last promotion was at my previous employment. The previous software leader left and I asked for the job. The CEO accepted me because I was the best person for the role at the time. I was certainly a safe pair of hands -- did what the business needed, not what the devs thought was most interesting.

4. My manager is my most credible source. He causes me to reflect on the way in which I am "seen" to do things, I am often perceived to be "pointed" in my interactions on technical matters. I like precision in technical discussion I don't like hand-waving.

5. Highly logical on technical discussion; strong empathy on emotional matters. I know because people choose me to discuss technical matters 0if they want an honest appraisal; they choose others if they want the approval of their idea. As for emotional matters, I get feedback from the face to the person I am having the discussion with.

6. I am not focussing on improving my skills. I am reading books on the matter but more for interest than actional ideas.

7. No, I have not identified my next role. Frankly, in my mid-fifties, the scope for advancement in my organisation is limited due to our poor financial performance. I have looked at positions elsewhere but have yet to get past the 1st in-person interview.

8. Getting them to talk in the language of the domain instead of the language of the implementor. This carries over into our codebase which, at a high-level, can be suffused with implementation-oriented names instead of domain-oriented names.

9. I have no problems with my manager. The only issue is how long it can take to "firm" up commitments on backfills for departed colleagues. We seem to take every departure as a reason to relitigate the need for that position.

10. Goodness knows. Something to do with quality products from the inside out.