on being managed

I’m maybe headed back to work in a real office for the first time in a while and want to put down some obvious thoughts/reminders to myself on how to be successful in that environment.

move fast

there are a hundred and one ways to get hung up on things that don’t matter, so repeat after me: think less do more, think less do more.

• send the damn email. double check the recipient list, your attachments, run spellcheck, and hit send. especially when talking to clients, its easy to waffle here and it will eat your day.

• don’t be afraid to look dumb. you are, so is everyone, the only way out is through. I promise you the dumb question is orders of magnitude less frustrating than finding out you’ve been stuck for a week on something that could have been resolved in a 30 second conversation.1

• progress the conversation in all communication. no dead messages. the secret is being specific, and you may need to beat your coworkers over the head with this. lead by example and try to get your questions answered with as little back and forth as possible.

take responsibility

an important lesson to be learned in life is that so much of it is out of your hands; this, however, becomes a crutch. own your shit to the greatest degree possible without also going insane.

• own your mistakes as soon as you see them made. it’s easy to lie by omission, or hide them in footnotes. one day the bill comes due tho, and its better to fix them now, while you still can, than at any point in the future. it will only get worse

• clearly communicate expectations in advance and follow up on all of them. whether handing work to coworkers or making requests of a client, be more specific. emails should include what you want done, how long you expect it to take, and when you need a response by at a minimum. follow up on these at least once before the proposed deadline.

• if you hand off work to someone, it remains your responsibility to ensure it is finished on time and meets your expectations for quality. if you depend on an input from another group, make sure they know it well in advance and you follow up regularly. it is and will always be your fault when they fail

• after doing the above, return again and be more specific. ambiguity is the mind-killer, it is the space in which schedules slip and scopes creep

• to the degree you can do this without being a total ass, take ownership for other people’s work as well. if you see another group getting sloppy, or letting ambiguity sneak in to the project, call them out on it (it can helpful to demonstrate that you are willing and able to fix issues yourself)

seek feedback

• make it very easy to critique your work, ask for feedback explicitly. do not waste your time explaining your mistakes away post-hoc, nobody cares. fix them, learn why you were wrong, and move on.

• especially in 1:1 meetings, ask for specific advice on how you can better contribute to the team. people are resistant to this, but lean into the discomfort here. be a pain about it, and if they still can’t provide actionable ideas after multiple meetings seriously reconsider why you’re working there.

• back to moving fast, try to tighten your feedback loops. do not let a fear of looking bad slow your growth

• try to give actionable feedback as often as possible, especially to your manager. again, lead by example. this habit can wear off on your coworkers and help you receive your own later on.

be a team player

• be kind when critiquing others; do not shy away from telling someone something they need to hear.

• always offer to help others, particularly the senior engineers. working closely with them will teach you more than any other assignments.

• take meeting notes and send them to the team after calls. do not ask for permission to do this, just do it. if you’re nervous, start by sending them to just your PM. if they’re of any value, expect to see them forwarded to the team2

• if an issue comes up more than twice, it should be made explicit and dealt with. encourage internal debate. related, if you send the same email more than twice, make it a google doc/blog/memo. Put it somewhere everyone has access and send the link when needed

• have some sympathy, your manager is also being managed

• be a joy to work with regardless of circumstance. seriously, a positive attitude is contagious and improves all things. fake it if you need to.

one final reminder

be careful what you get good at kid

recommended reading

much of this is stolen directly from Dynomight’s “Advice on Being Managed” and Ben Kuhn’s “Some mistakes I made as a new manager”, with my own experience mixed in. Ben writes for managers, but is easily inverted for employees. companies (tend to) succeed when the manager/employee relationship is productive in both directions, and understanding both sides helps make that happen.

also eigenrobots advice for acedemic refugees isn’t just for postdocs - college prepares you for academia, the best thing to do upon getting a job is unlearning most of your habits