One of my colleagues recently received the feedback that they should be "more technical". I've heard from other people who have been told that as well, and it is universally received as an insult. Further, I personally hate it as it is non-specific. It sounds like advice a non-technical person would give.

After considering it for some time, I think "be more technical" can mean parts of 4 things:

1. Technical communication. I value conversations when the other person is clear about what they mean, what they know, how they can contribute, and how they expect you to contribute. This includes understanding and communicating specific technical details in the particular jargon that applies.

2. Engineering mindset. Engineers think in terms of components, capabilities, and constraints.

3. Troubleshooting skills. Troubleshooting involves demarcating components and testing systems at various levels of operation.

4. Specific technologies.

---

What do you do with this feedback? What do you think of it?