Ed Finkler talks with Dave Rael about running a nonprofit organization, mental illness, speaking openly, and making better environments for humans
Ed Finkler, also known as Funkatron, started making web sites before browsers had frames. He does front-end and server-side work in Python, PHP, and JavaScript. Ed is the founder and chairman of Open Sourcing Mental Illness, a non-profit 501c3 dedicated to raising awareness and supporting those with mental illness in the tech industry. He served as web lead and security researcher at The Center for Education and Research in Information Assurance and Security (CERIAS) at Purdue University for 9 years. Along with Chris Hartjes, Ed is co-host of the Development Hell podcast. Ed writes at funkatron.com.
Chapters:
- - Dave introduces the show and Ed Finkler
- - Ed's lifestyle and career change into running OSMI full time
- - The nature of Open Sourcing Mental Illness (OSMI) and Ed's journey to speaking about mental health and illness
- - Why and how Ed started speaking openly about his struggles
- - Fear, shaming, and cultural barriers to open sharing progress regarding mental health and human and developer tendencies that can be harmful
- - Vulnerability, masculinity, mental health, and the difficulty of treating the brain
- - The many faces of mental illness and fuzzy classifications
- - Contributing to better work environments
- - Characteristics of hostile workplaces toward those with mental illnesses
- - The mental illness spectrum, degrees of dysfunction, and the ever-changing nature of one's mental health
- - International coverage for OSMI
- - Ed's book recommendations
- - Ed's top 3 tips for delivering more value
- - Keeping up with Ed
Resources:
- Ed's Blog
- Open Sourcing Mental Illness
- Stronger Than Fear: OSMI 2017 Fundraiser
- The Development Hell Podcast
- Anxiety Disorders
- Depression
- Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
- OSMI Supporters
- Chris Hartjes
- The Development Hell Podcast Episode Where Ed Opened Up About His Struggles
- Anthony Shaw on Developer On Fire
- Jason Lowenthal on Developer On Fire
- Jon Jagger on Developer On Fire
- OSMI Resources, Including the Ebooks Ed Mentioned
- Mental Health First Aid
- Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market - Eric Schlosser
- Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal - Eric Schlosser
- Ed's "How To Be a Great Developer" Talk
Ed's book recommendation:
Ed's top 3 tips for delivering more value:
- Practice Empathy
- Be humble and understand you're probably wrong about most things - don't fear being wrong
- Constantly learn new things