A little about me
David Nyoike Mungai
Civil Engineer / Software Engineer / Founder
So, who am I?
I studied Civil Engineering at Kenyatta University, though my work has taken me a good way past concrete and steel. I’m also a full-stack software engineer, and I run Klee, a software engineering and technology development studio.
What ties it together is curiosity. I like taking a problem apart, working out how the pieces fit, and turning the answer into something that actually holds up. It has taken me into engineering, software, design, and business. The overlap between them is usually where things get interesting.
There’s plenty I still want to learn. Assembly language is on the list; I’d like to understand what’s happening underneath all the layers we build on top of.
Mostly I’m still working it out, same as everyone. I just happen to enjoy that part.
Kaizen.
Continuous improvement, one step at a time.
The idea is simple enough: get a little better, a little at a time. On most days there’s something worth learning, some process worth tidying, or a mistake worth not making twice.
I don’t expect to get things right the first time. I’d rather put something down, see where it breaks, and adjust.
Progress rarely looks dramatic. More often it’s the small, unglamorous correction you make today that you didn’t know to make yesterday.
Small steps count.A FEW BOOKS THAT HAVE STAYED WITH ME
Mastery
The Design of Everyday Things
The Psychology of Money
Not much in common between them, which is probably the point.
FROM MY BOOKSHELF
Three books I’ve enjoyed.
Mastery by Robert Greene
Expertise takes longer than anyone would like. The part I needed to hear was about being willing to stay a beginner.
The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman
Why some things explain themselves the moment you pick them up, and others leave you hunting for the manual. I think about this one most weeks.
The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
Less about money than about behaviour: patience, risk, and the quiet ways we talk ourselves into decisions.
AWAY FROM THE WORKSTATION
A few other interests.
Running
A good way to clear my head. The kilometres tend to sort out problems I couldn’t think my way through at a desk.
Archery
Focus, patience, and a great deal of repetition. My aim remains a work in progress.
Chess
I like thinking a few moves ahead. The occasional terrible decision keeps me honest.
CURRENTLY IN MY EARS
Podcasts I keep coming back to.
Mostly technology, business, science, and psychology, plus a few that are simply good company.
- The Lex Fridman Podcast Long conversations on science, technology, and philosophy.
- Contrarian Thinking Buying businesses, and thinking for yourself about money.
- The Diary of a CEO Founders, psychology, and the human side of building.
- Huge If True Optimistic takes on where technology is heading.
- Financially Incorrect Money, from angles you don’t usually hear.
- StarTalk Astrophysics, with a sense of humour.
- Modern Wisdom Psychology, habits, and living a bit better.
- Silicon Valley Girl Startups and tech from the inside.
- The Gstaad Guy Podcast Culture and satire, played completely straight.
- The Primeagen Show Programming, and strong opinions about it.