Web Witch Weekly

Issue 6: Level Unlocked

February 07, 2023

Time is moving incredibly quickly for me right now! Two weeks ago, I was in Marrakech, Morocco with the rest of Rapid for our annual kickoff (also, we're hiring). We spent the week hearing updates and plans for 2023 from leadership and teams. It was also a chance to connect with our coworkers we don't typically see every day, we have offices in San Francisco, Berlin and Tel Aviv with a number of remote workers spread throughout Europe and the USA.

I'm finding this time together in person is so incredibly valuable because it allows you to connect on a new level compared to when you're all just on a screen. I love remote work and allowing people the flexibility of remote work, but these touchpoints are incredibly important if you have a remote team. I got to chat with people in the company I probably wouldn't have as we traveled on buses to dinner and other activities. It was lovely.

It was also a lot. As an introvert, there wasn't a whole lot of time to recharge so by Thursday night I was exhausted. It was a really awesome trip. Rapid is a partner with Scuderia AlphaTauri and we had the F1 car onsite and few of the team came to do a panel with our Field CTO. They came with us out to our afternoon activity in the desert after and I can now say that I've been mountain biking in the Moroccan desert with some of an F1 team.

I'm extremely grateful for the experience we had as a company. It was one of those moments where you know it's special so you just want to soak it up. I felt incredibly taken care of by Rapid. Not just on the trip but some updates to the company really left me feeling like I made the right choice to step out of my comfort zone and take this job last year.

Good things are coming and I'm excited for working to unlock the next level at the company this year.

Career Things

I feel as if I've been saying this since October, but I think my book is finally done. I submitted the last round of edits from the 3rd review feedback last Friday. I had to create a bunch of website examples from scratch as well because I couldn't get permission for a handful. That was perhaps the most time-consuming bit. I'm just waiting for the thumbs up before I let out a giant exhale. That will be a massive weight off my shoulders, and I can't wait to see it in print!

On the Web

PWA Checklist - I will be speaking on visual and UX design in regard to PWAs quite a bit this year. This checklist is based off the talk I gave last May. I'll be delivering the talk a few times this year, but this is the checklist to reference when you're thinking about the design of your PWA.

Three attributes for better web forms - Jeremy Keither talks about how to improve form UX with attributes.

Hex colors aren't great at anything except being popular - Chris Coyier talks about HEX codes and where our tools are failing us when it comes to utilizing better color modes on the web.

Books of Note & The Weekly Music Find

All books at Manning.com are 40% off this week! Snag some new books to level up your technical skills here.

Some of these may be affiliate links and I will receive a small commission at no cost to you.

Currently & Still Reading:

I decided that my goal is to read 24 books this year. 12 books related to work, and 12 books about whatever: history, fantasy, etc. I'm on 2/24 so far. It's February so that's on track.

Finished reading:

Weekly Music:

I rediscovered Fall Out Boy in 2020. I hadn't realized they'd still been making music, let alone music that spoke to my angsty teenage soul. Love From the Other Side hits that spot again.

February is incredibly hectic for me travel wise so I'm hoping to find routine somehow in it all, but we'll see. Have a great week everyone!

Cheers,The Web Witch (Stephanie)