Reference Review: TechLead

Whassup, guys?!

Are you in for a treat today - I am going to review a resource I found on YouTube a couple years back. TechLead is a channel maintained by Patrick Shyu, a self-described "ex-Google ex-Facebook millionaire". Plus, of course, he was a tech lead. The title kind of gives it away, huh?

Years ago, back in 2019, a friend of mine (remember Jermyn?) pasted the link to the YouTube channel in a WhatsApp group chat. That was when Patrick Shyu had just been fired by Facebook.

I confess that I've not been keeping up with the channel as regularly as I could have, but there's so much content to consume on YouTube alone, and only one of me. That being said, Patrick Shyu's content is pretty good, in the appropriate doses.

The Premise

Patrick Shyu doles out advice on tech trends, software development and life generally, sometimes all at once. 

The Aesthetics

Patrick Shyu mostly conducts his podcasts in long continuous format (albeit with glaring cuts here and there). The visual is usually of him chilling with a mug of coffee and talking to the camera, occasionally gesticulating a bit. 

Once in a while, there will be a super-imposed video clip of some other visual to further accentuate his point.

Not terribly interesting in and of itself, to be honest. Patrick isn't ugly but he has less varied facial expressions than a concrete wall.

The Experience

Since the visual is rarely that interesting, it's the audio I've tended to focus on. I can let TechLead run in the background while I shower, cook or work. 

The Interface

Nothing says "basic" like TechLead. It's usually just a monologue, often with no chapters.

What I Liked

Some complain about the monotonous, deadpan delivery. It's actually my favorite part. Shyu's tongue-in-cheek, offhand references to his millionaire (sometimes multi-millionaire) status is hilarious. 

In particular, the trollish ones are side-splitting.

Honestly, I think a lot of his advice and observations are pretty sound, if fairly obvious.

The backdrops can be pretty cool. Most of the time, it's a little workdesk or a rustic cottage background, but occasionally it's an outdoor setting.

Normally I'm not a big fan of ads. But the way Shyu handles it, is smooth as silk. Much of it is down to his speedy and continuous verbal delivery, to the point that it's not glaringly obvious it's a sales pitch until you're a few seconds into it. This guy has turned it into an art form!

The fact that Patrick Shyu has actual experience working in Big Tech and has something to offer other than the usual rose-colored narrative, is already one helluva plus.

What I Didn't

His videos are all ten to twenty minute duration monologues. with no segregation or organization of points. In small doses, Patrick Shyu is fine, but if you have to sit through an entirely monologue to get to the points, it tends to get exhausting.

Sometimes Shyu drones on about his personal life, when all I really want to hear about is his opinion on tech, and tech experiences. Worse, sometimes he talks about cryptocurrency.

Conclusion

TechLead isn't great, but it's entirely serviceable if you want some industry advice, or just a voice in the background while you grind. A solid choice of channel for a techie to subscribe to.

My Rating

7 / 10

It's coffee time,
T___T