Our end users are our co-workers. Seeing immediate results of our efforts is gratifying. But since they can find us with a quick Slack DM or in our office, it’s easy to fall into a cycle of requests for help and new requirements. How do we get our work done while also keeping users happy?

The modern worker’s productivity is besieged by constant interruptions. With DevOps end users often being the developer you chat with over coffee or who sends adorable cat GIFs via Slack, you might feel obligated to respond to their requests for help and enhancements in whatever tool/framework/component you own and that their work relies on. I’ll share my experience and struggle to maintain developer happiness and achieve my longer term goals of a faster, more efficient delivery pipeline (which should make them happier, ultimately).