brainbaking/content/about.md

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title: "Hi, I’m Wouter Groeneveld"
bigimg: /img/About Me.jpg
disableComments: true
---

And I have a deep passion to inspire others on everything that drives me. I like to think of myself as one of those [_polymaths_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymath) or Rennaissance Men:

> Renaissance man (noun) - a person with many talents or areas of knowledge.

Professionally, I am a PhD researcher at the [Faculty of Engineering Technology](https://iiw.kuleuven.be/english), KU Leuven. I have been an experienced software engineer for 11 years before that, taking on various roles from agile coaching to technical lead. I am not only interested in technical software development, but also in what happens at **non-cognitive, human level** when developing software _together_. 

I used to be only good at programming because I thought, as a Computer Scientist, you specialize instead of generalize. But the more I worked with computers, the more my hands itched to do something else. So nowadays I love to go wide and pass on that enthusiasm for knowledge on any level.

Those areas of knowledge include:

#### Software development

* Test your stuff before writing your code! I’m a heavy Test Driven Development (TDD) fan and I bark at those who don’t. I teach agile software engineering techniques, in both industry and academia.
* I love dynamic languages. I have taught Javascript as a dynamic and functional language. Every excuse to write in something dynamic is a good one.
* Pair programming used as a tool to learn from each other and to improve code quality are two values I firmly believe in.

Take a look at my [<svg class='icon'><use xlink:href='#github'></use></svg>Github account](https://github.com/wgroeneveld).

#### Baking

* I hold a [professional bread baker's degree](/post/learning-to-become-a-baker/) so naturally I love to think of myself as a real baker. 
* My passion within baking is [<svg class='icon icon-text'><use xlink:href='#bread'></use></svg>sourdough bread](https://redzuurdesem.be), spreading the word by organizing workshops to repopularize its use. 

#### Writing and philosophizing

* I'm a [fountain pen addict](/post/fountain-pens-first-look/) and avid [<svg class='icon icon-text'><use xlink:href='#book'></use></svg>journaler](/post/journaling-in-practice/).
* This website is the ideal base for writing down my thoughts about virtually anything, primarily intended to amuse myself and not others.
* I like to integrate Philosophical and Psychological approaches into my research. 

#### Drawing

* I'm just starting to [learn](/post/teaching-yourself-to-draw/) how to use ink other than for writing purposes. 

### Where good ideas come from: books

I keep an active <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5451893-wouter" target="_blank"><svg class='icon'><use xlink:href='#goodreads'></use></svg>Goodreads</a> account where I manage everything I've read and want to read. I invite you to join the community there. Marking a book as read and writing a (short) review never was that satisfying... 

I used to be almost exclusively a fantasy reader. Now I mostly read non-fiction on the most diverse topics, but I do have a soft spot for things like philosophy, art, mindful food and software engineering. 

These are the latest 12 books I've read:

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