“Why are some software developers average and some others great? After a few years, I noticed that creativity is an important aspect of problem-solving and software development.” Wouter Groeneveld is a software engineer, computer science education researcher, and the author of “The Creative Programmer”. In this episode, Wouter dives deep into what makes good engineers truly exceptional: creativity! Wouter describes his definition of creativity and shares the 7 key dimensions of a creative programmer - from technical mastery to embracing constraints and being curious. Listen to the episode to take your coding to the next level and unleash your inner creativity as a software engineer!   Listen out for: Career Journey - [00:03:35] Reasons Software Projects Fail - [00:06:10] The Creative Programmer - [00:08:29] Social Approval & Seniority Aspects - [00:14:06] Technical Knowledge: Getting More Inputs - [00:17:39] Personal Knowledge Management - [00:20:22] Creativity Begets Creativity - [00:23:37] Collaboration & Communication - [00:25:37] Collective Creativity - [00:29:05] Constraints - [00:30:55] Critical Thinking - [00:35:33] Creative State of Mind - [00:39:42] Virtual Interruptions - [00:41:56] Well-Rested - [00:44:36] Curiosity & Perseverance - [00:47:11] 2 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:49:04] _____ Wouter Groeneveld’s BioWouter Groeneveld is a software engineer, computer science education researcher, and professional bread baker. Wouter was an enterprise software engineer for 11 years with a passion for inspiring and teaching others. After a few years of experience, he became involved in teaching, coaching, and onboarding. Witnessing the failure of many software projects led him to ask the following question: What makes a good software engineer? That question ultimately caused him to quit his job in the industry in 2018 and rejoin academia. Since then, Wouter has been conducting research on nontechnical skills in the software engineering world. He has written extensively about the topic. A list of his academic publications can be found at https://brainbaking.com/works/papers/ (all papers are open access).. Follow Wouter: Website – brainbaking.com Email – ⁠[email protected]⁠ _____ Our Sponsors Manning Publications is a premier publisher of technical books on computer and software development topics for both experienced developers and new learners alike. Manning prides itself on being independently owned and operated, and for paving the way for innovative initiatives, such as early access book content and protection-free PDF formats that are now industry standard.Get a 45% discount for Tech Lead Journal listeners by using the code techlead45 for all products in all formats. Like this episode? Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/161. Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. Buy me a coffee or become a patron.