(disclaimer: only relevant for anxious overachievers)
the stakes are often not that high as you made up in your mind.
all the urgent tickets. the projects, complicated, detailed architecting, estimation, request record feasibility checks, comprehensive SOWs.
urgent PoCs. sample data
bug, getting stuck on a flow, don’t know how to proceed
the tasks
the fires
the metrics
the goals
the PRs
the overruns
the changes
the complaints
the calls, the initiatives
the thorough preps
the ideas, big picture, strategies
the trainings
the onboarding
they don’t matter
life goes on
people forget
things will be alright
the dedication. karthik. jose. jon. deti. olga. yulia. mark. scott. mills. sean. gabriel. paul. elias. hm.
you get replaced
you do your best. you try to impress. you show your best work. show initiatives. be strategic. think creatively. solve problems. always ready to go. responsive.
craft impeccable emails. hit all the KPIs. adjust with new metrics.
prep shiny decks. well thought out presentations. chew on data, run analysis, produce business cases.
for the best chance of a promotion. for max salary increase. to be considered
all so flakey
what game are we playing
why so serious.
have fun
nothing matters
drive productive meetings.
coordinate and motivate people.
have 1:1s, listen. care. understand what motivates them. align goals to it. remove frictions. help them hit flow. give context. provide roadmap. give sense and opportunity for growth. trust people. give autonomy. don’t micromanage
they don’t matter. if you die tomorrow your work place will replace you
it doesn’t matter that much, don’t worry be happy
quite true
why so serious
play to keep playing
things I’ve learned in 12 years working
you control less than you think. you can work your ass and head off and it still won’t guarantee your promotion
nothing is personal. things will change. decisions are made. some people will get screwed over. everything is effect of people chasing their own metrics. incentives rule everything
know what makes them tick, know what makes you tick, and you’re set. don’t worry too much about the rest.
your promotion and salary increase depends on too many external variables outside your control. new management, new metrics, shitty managers, change of company direction
focus on what you can control, know what you want to get out of the arrangement, and go get them.
learn what you want to learn. build relationships you will value in the future. think long term. don’t chase external validation, short term rewards like salary increase or job titles. they don’t reflect your self worth.
know who you want to be, what you want to learn, what you want to get experience in
