This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Joe Anthony
When I was a junior dev, code reviews felt terrifying. Someone smarter than me would point out my mistakes, and I’d nervously push fixes. Over time, though, I realized code reviews weren’t about nitpicking—they were about growth, consistency, and shared ownership.
Funny enough, when I stepped into a team lead role, I realized leadership works the same way.
Lesson 1: Small Comments Matter
A single “Nice catch 👏” on a pull request can boost someone’s confidence way more than we think. The same goes for leadership—tiny moments of recognition go a long way. You don’t always need grand speeches; sometimes a quick “thanks” keeps morale high.
Lesson 2: Don’t Just Point Out Bugs
Bad code reviews only focus on what’s wrong. Great ones explain why and guide toward a better solution. In leadership, feedback works the same. Criticism without context just frustrates people. But constructive feedback helps them grow.
Lesson 3: Everyone Has Blind Spots
Even senior devs push buggy code sometimes. That doesn’t mean they’re bad—it means they’re human. Teams thrive when leaders normalize mistakes, treat them as learning opportunities, and help prevent them in the future.
Lesson 4: Iteration > Perfection
No PR is ever perfect. That’s why we merge, test, and improve continuously. Leadership is also iterative. You’ll never get it 100% right—but small, continuous improvements compound over time.
Tools That Can Help
In dev, we’ve built amazing tools for automation and CI/CD. But leadership often still runs on gut feeling. Recently, I stumbled across a resource about AI-driven mentoring for leaders that delivers real-time nudges—kind of like a “linting tool” for leadership habits. It really clicked with me, because it mirrors how we already use automation to make code better.
👉 Check it out here
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Final Thought
Code reviews don’t just make code better—they make devs better. And leadership, at its best, does the same for teams.
So if you’re stepping into leadership as a developer, think about how you approach code reviews. Chances are, you already know more about leadership than you realize.
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Joe Anthony
Joe Anthony | Sciencx (2025-09-17T22:21:01+00:00) What Code Reviews Taught Me About Leadership. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/09/17/what-code-reviews-taught-me-about-leadership/
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