Systems thinking
I look for the shape of a problem before I look for the shape of a solution. This makes me useful early in a project — and occasionally frustrating in the middle of one.
Strengths & weaknesses, plainly stated.
Interviewers ask this. Everyone rehearses answers. Here's mine, up front, so we can spend the actual conversation on more interesting things.
What I'm good at
Craft under constraint
Tight timelines are where I do my best work. I'd rather ship something that's 85% right and learn than polish something that's 95% wrong.
Building teams that trust each other
Every team I've led has out-shipped its headcount. Not because we worked more, but because we argued about the right things.
Translating ambiguity into a plan
Give me a fuzzy strategy doc and a whiteboard and I'll come back with a roadmap you can actually staff.
Where I'm still working
Impatience with slow decisions
I have to remind myself that alignment is a feature, not a tax. I'm still working on it.
Preference for craft over politics
I'd rather push a pixel than push a stakeholder. This has cost me at least one promotion I can name.
Over-indexing on the interesting problem
The unglamorous middle-of-the-project work is not my natural home. I've learned to write it into my calendar.