How I work, what I value, and how to work well with me.
I offer this to you because I recognize that the faster we get to know each other — how we work, our cognitive biases, and habits — the better and stronger our relationship will be, and the more we'll accomplish together. I encourage you to write your own Operating Manual so I and your team can learn how to work best with you. As a human being, I am continually changing, so this is a living document.
Favorite Show: The Expanse (figure out which character I am)
Favorite Movies: Gladiator, The Last Samurai, King Arthur
Primary Objectives from Work
My work must be valued. Without my day-to-day work being valued, I lose motivation and become depressed. However, I do not need verbal acknowledgement of my value — in fact, this will normally be interpreted as false value.
Fairness is a number one priority. If I believe I am treated unfairly, I will react. If you believe I have treated you unfairly, please let me know and I will do anything to remedy the situation.
Learning is another number one priority. I continuously learn new skills and expect the people around me to as well. If you ask a question, I will answer it. The tone of my voice may sound like I am wondering why you didn't already know the answer — this is a function of one of my cognitive biases.
"Be the change you want to see in the world." — Mahatma Gandhi
"Evil triumphs when good men do nothing." — Edmund Burke
Communication
Hierarchy of communication — most to least urgent:
Call Cell
Make sure I have your phone number in my phone.
Text / SMS / iMessage Cell
If I do not answer or do not have your number in my phone.
Works well in combination with a call.
Audio messages preferred for longer discussions.
WhatsApp Meta
Same use as text.
For communication overseas or with international people.
Signal Independent
Same as text.
NatSec topics.
Telegram Independent
Same as text. Most secure.
Email Google
I keep my email open in my browser. All emails route to the same inbox.
Instagram Meta
Notifications on. Used to manage social/events business network. Lower in the funnel than LinkedIn.
LinkedIn Microsoft
Notifications on. Used to manage business network. Primary lead management tool.
Slack / Discord
Notifications off. Periodically checked — do not count on me seeing anything promptly.
I do not like repeating myself or doing multiple follow-ups, and I will not do that to you. If I ask you to do something and you acknowledge it, I expect it to be done unless told otherwise. If I do not get acknowledgement, I will still assume you are doing it — but if not, I accept responsibility for it not being accomplished.
I have a hard exterior and abrasive personality. If you have had few interactions with me, this will be off-putting. Move past this and I will be a loyal worker and/or friend.
I usually (>80% of the time) do not respond well to feedback initially via non-verbal body language. I tend to process things slowly and reflect on myself. If you are right, I will acknowledge that fact.
I like walk-ins. Nothing I am doing is as important as making sure you have everything you need to do your job. As long as the space is open on my calendar, my door is open.
I like 1:1s for: checking in on how you're doing, what you need from me, personnel issues, broad strategy questions, miscellaneous professional development, discussing concerns from written progress reports, providing missing context from the board, and bi-directional feedback. Reviews of results against plan should be in writing and other forums — I believe peer accountability around performance is more powerful than accountability to me.
When giving feedback, I come at the conversation either as "I want to help you be better" or "I want you to learn from my experiences" — though it might come across as "I want you to think I am smart."
Known Cognitive Biases
I believe in giving people a chance. I will assume you know what you are doing or can figure it out. This leads me to not giving enough guidance — if this occurs, speak up. I may not have a good answer because I do not know.
I make assumptions based on my experience. I tend to make educated guesses based on the population of people I have interacted with during my life.
I assume you know what I know. What I know feels like general knowledge to me. This can lead to misjudging your understanding or answering a question with an "I can't believe you didn't know that" tone of voice.
I make multiple logic leaps. When communicating ideas, I assume you can follow my logical leaps. If you cannot, please make me aware — I will not think less of you or take offense, as I know this is one of my biases.
Decision Making
I do not care for options based on no data or reasoning without first principles. Data can be quantitative or qualitative — but I will not agree with your interpretation of data alone. The "why" behind the data matters. First principles must come from a sound understanding of economics, personal incentives, physics, and engineering.
One data point is not enough to sway my decision or force action, aside from a personnel issue requiring mentoring.
I do not believe in Monday Morning Quarterbacking. Remove hindsight bias from the decision.
I believe in the 80/20 rule when making decisions — sometimes 50/50 or even 20/80. I know this can lead to cognitive bias.
One of my strengths is synthesizing information from multiple sources: industry practices, articles, and data.
Work Style
I work at two speeds: 100% and 0%. Sometimes I am not wanting to work or think. Other times I will be firing on all cylinders. Plan accordingly.
If you want feedback, ask for it. I may give feedback without being asked. All comments are intended to make you better.
I do my best to be on time. I will rarely be more than 1–2 minutes early. I maintain my own Google Calendar — consult it as an aid in reaching me. I will share it with you.
I do not take notes. Taking notes distracts me from the conversation at hand. I prefer recording conversations for review afterward.
I try to automate as much as possible within my workflow.
I like collaborative documents: Google Docs, Google Sheets, Upverter, Onshape. This way, if I have a question, I can find the answer without interrupting your workflow.
Micromanagement
I am hands-off. I hired you, or you work for me, and thus I will trust you to do your job.
I aspire to the Context over Control methodology made popular by Netflix. If you fail, I am at fault for not giving you enough context about the problem space or organizational goals.