Employee spotlight: Matej Lazarević
He says Barrage gives him support and a chance to learn more; he is a hardworker who rather gives a pep talk than receives it - find out more of what makes Matej Lazarević, our Engineering Manager, unique.
Tell us about your history with Barrage - how did you first learn about Barrage? Why did you join Barrage, and what has kept you here?
I clearly remember Barrage’s website from 2017 that said something like they are “getting s**t done” and it sounded very obvious that I also want to get s**t done so I sent an email and soon met with Feđa and Ivan.
I also remember that Ivan had a “confused Steve Harvey” look on his face because I applied for a Junior Frontend Developer position, but chose Python for solving my recruitment tasks.
Back in 2017, there weren’t a lot of us here; I even had to install the operating system myself. From a messy pile of computers, Ivan said “pick this one”, so I booted up Debian and saw 64 GB of RAM on my system monitor. At that moment I was the one with the “confused Steve Harvey” face so I instinctively reinstalled my operating system “due to a weird bug with reading the RAM”. Ivan had a good laugh and told me that I actually have quite a beast in my possession.
I joined Barrage because they always value and respect the knowledge of every employee. I had constant and neverending support in learning and I knew that was the only ingredient I needed for growing as a person and as a professional.
What mistake did you make early in your career, and what did you learn from it?
Back in the day, when I was a college freshman, I wanted to work in IT mostly because I thought that working with other people would be kept to a bare minimum. But, oh boy, was I wrong.
Using mimicry as a strategy to avoid obligations
What is one accomplishment in your life that you are most proud of?
Worked my way through university and graduated after 8 years without sending my family to a mental asylum.
What energizes you at work?
Not too long ago, I found out that giving kudos to a team member makes me even happier than receiving praise for a job well done. That feeling is naturally pushing you to find out how to help someone achieve their goals and lead them to their personal success. Giving deserved and candid praise is both motivating and energizing me, and I’m sure I’ll never get bored from that feeling.
Who has influenced you the most when it comes to how you approach work?
My parents are hard-working, disciplined, and pedantic. I assume I’ve inherited at least a bit from anything, so you could say that they greatly influenced my approach. Also, a lot of my friends have similar job descriptions and very different approaches from each other, so there’s always something new to learn from them.
Keeping things under control at the .debug conference
Describe Barrage in 3 words.
Bold, challenging, fun.
What is your favorite destination you’ve visited, and why?
I didn't have many opportunities to visit countries abroad. Still, I've seen a lot of beautiful places, national parks, mountains, and lakes in Croatia. I remember one time when I found one small and beautiful location on the other side of the lake near my hometown, where I felt such peace like never in my life.
What is one thing you cannot live without?
A purpose. Without a purpose in life, without some goal to strive for, I’d be useless.
In five years, what are your vision and hope?
I hope we’ll witness progress in medicine, clean energy, and vertical farming. Any future without war or famine sounds good to me.
If you could time travel, in which time would you travel?
I’d probably go back a thousand years or so and show humanity the current technology and fry their brains. I saw enough SF, so I know that some time wraiths would probably want to end me because of that.
What is the best compliment you have ever received?
"What a handsome boy" by my grandma.
How do you define success in life?
Being content with the person I am in the good times and bad, staying humble and striving for self-improvement.
I value that over money and power.
If you could switch places with someone for a day, who would it be?
Usain Bolt, so I could sprint anywhere, or my cat, so I could push stuff from the cabinet without consequences.
What three words would your friends use to describe you?
Worrier, quiet, observant.
Meet the rest of the team!
We love having people like Matej in our collective. Driven individuals are the ones that build the motivational culture we nurture at Barrage.
If you would like to be a part of that culture and get to know the rest of our team, check out our open positions.