After skimming the article and reading comments here - I can't resist the urge to bad mouth some of my contemporaries. A couple of developers who I worked with, who I know personally to be useless, ended up joining tiny startups. These startups failed as I expected yet these developers translated the short time they were in inflated positions into careers.

Obsession with titles is a real thing. Getting a "VP of Engineering", "Director of Engineering" or "CTO" onto your resume can affect how your career prospects change over time. It is frustrating that failing at being a capable CTO can set you up better than succeeding at being an exceptional Team Lead.