Leadership
Leadership, open-handed
What I believe about leading people, where I picked it up, and how I practice it. None of it is finished. If you've learned it differently, I'd like to hear how.
Vision made tangible
See where things need to go, then make it real fast, so people can react to something instead of a slide.
- Picked up
- A redesign stalled for months on business questions. A working prototype let executives see the choices instead of debating them.
- In practice
- Prototype before the deck. My teams test ideas with stakeholders the same way.
Intent over instruction
Pass down the reason, not just the request. A team with the why often finds a better answer than the one you asked for.
- Picked up
- Stephen Bungay, The Art of Action.
- In practice
- Every piece of work names the outcome it's for before it starts.
Invite, don't pitch
Bring ideas as invitations to build together, not finished answers to approve.
- Picked up
- Feedback that I could come across as arriving with the answer already decided.
- In practice
- Co-create with peers before landing on a direction.
Pain + reflection = progress
Honest on misses, specific on learning.
- Picked up
- Ray Dalio, Principles.
- In practice
- A Friday reflection and an observations log of what went wrong and why.
Curiosity before conclusions
Ask how someone sees the situation before giving feedback. Sharpen only as needed.
- In practice
- 1:1s start with the other person's read, not mine.
Right work, right outcomes, right investment
Busy isn't the same as moving the product. Tie the work to the results it exists to change.
- In practice
- A monthly operating rhythm that ties every team's work to product KPIs. It grew into ProductOps.
How I practice it
- Monday setup
- Friday reflection
- Observations log
- Retreats: reflect → operate → align → build
What's shaped how you lead?
Send me the book, the boss, or the mistake. I'll trade you mine.