Working with me
Before meeting with a new team or team member, I share my personal "user manual" and "superpowers" to kick off our partnership.
User Manual
How I view success
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Besides shipping great products, I think of success as a UX team and CD is uncovering a problem and creating solutions. They may work, they may not work, but as long as the learnings we gather along the way help to inform future goals and iterations, that's a success.
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Setting tough goals and reaching for them. I like clear goals with clear outcomes. Sometimes the outcome isn't shipping, but understanding and getting deeper into the problem space.
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Metrics. Metrics. Metrics. I like to see how we're tracking to metrics that are set and having the time, energy and wherewithal to pivot if or when necessary as a team.
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Tracking to what we say we're going to do for our users and being clear on our product/design principles.
How to give me feedback
If possible, feedback in the moment or as close to the moment is preferable. If comfortable, I prefer verbal communication, but understand that people's comfort levels vary and am also ok with written comms.
How I give feedback
I'm open and like to tell people when they're doing great when they're doing great. More often than not, feedback that's not praise is just me thinking of ways others can grow and expand themselves and not something that you must do. More like nuggets of advice that you can take or leave.
Communication & meeting preferences
I 100% prefer in person comms. I like jamming with folks over whiteboards or talking out questions and solutions. If I'm not in a meeting or focus block, feel free to drop by my desk.
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I tend to have a lot of meetings on my calendar and am protective of my time. A meeting without a clear agenda may be deprioritized for me.
What I'm working on
Communication. Sometimes when I'm in the weeds or overwhelmed I can be non-communicative. I'm working on it and have improved, but it does crop up from time to time. Please give me feedback if you find I am slipping into old habits
Superpowers
Image credit: IdeoU
Visionaries can see a future destination in vivid color. And while some details about how to get there may be hazy, the visionary’s account is more than enough to start the team on its way. Along with providing an initial push, visionaries can help the team keep its ambition high throughout the journey. They’re a good counterbalance to pragmatists on the team.
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Working together
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Visionaries aren’t only there to help with the big, bold stuff. They can also be helpful to tap whenever you’re trying to get a handle on something abstract and intangible—even something small.
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Just because someone can see a vision doesn’t always mean they’re experts at articulating it. You may need to ask them lots of questions in order to tease out what’s in their mind’s eye.
Image credit: IdeoU
Provocateurs are much more concerned with being effective than with being liked. And they routinely push the team outside its comfort zone or break up consensus by playing devil’s advocate. They often strive for greatness when others might be content with good enough. The team needs them most when the work lacks originality or everyone is playing it too safe.
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Working together
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Let yourself be provoked. It can feel hard at first, but don’t take it as an affront to what you’ve already done. Take it as a challenge to go even further.
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You can be blunt with Provocateurs. While they can be strong-willed, they are generally very open to getting honest, tough feedback. They’ll respect you for giving it.