It has been a long time since I’ve written here. But a very dear friend had only one ask for a big milestone birthday — and that was to blog. So, Ma.tt, this one is for you.
I think a lot about how much is too much to share on an online forum. There are pictures of my kids on here. Is that too much? I’ve asked them what they want and they get to read and approve every post about them before it goes up. Is that enough? The whole on line world is so much different than when I was their age, which means I can’t point to what worked or didn’t work for me. So much of what I do in my work life is around pattern matching. Seeing the problems in front of me, or at least the questions, and searching for prior examples of something similar I’ve experienced or solved. I can’t really do that when it comes to blogging. So, I’m making it up as I go, and iterating.
I also wonder a lot about what this blog is for. I’ve literally had CEOs who are interviewing me for a job say that they have read my blog. In one case, it was a beautiful opportunity for us to connect on a deeper level about a topic that both of us were wrestling with and that he had enjoyed reading my perspective here on the blog. In another case, it was much more of the CEO doing his research and wondering how much of what I’m writing about the past is still true today. Honestly, that one felt less good. I get it, and I wonder where the curiosity was rather than what felt like fear.
As a result – I’m feeling hesitant to post anything. But I want to write. And I want to share. Sometimes I’m sharing stuff that happened years ago, but I think is still a potentially helpful idea to share with ya’ll. Other times it is top of mind in the here and now. I don’t try hard to make that distinction because in most of the blog-o-sphere, it just doesn’t matter. But, I do find in some intersections of my real life it does. So my ask is this – enjoy this space, hopefully you find something valuable here. If we meet in real life – I hope you can be curious about what you read here and use it to spark a conversation full of wonder.
I think this fear of what people with think and how it will affect me and the loved ones I write about is a big part of why I’ve slowed the posts down. That makes the writer in me itching for a new outlet. I started this blog because I love to write, and I’ve had so many people I’ve worked with through the years ask me to write down a lot of the ideas and lessons that I share at work so that more people can read them.
When I first went to work for a large tech company, my boss looked at me and said, “You lead like no one I’ve ever seen. That isn’t how we do things at [this company]. You will have to find your own way in order to lead authentically and be successful here.” He wasn’t saying my leadership was wrong — just the polar opposite of how leaders at that company typically worked. So, I spent the next several years staying authentically true to myself and really focusing on how to use that difference as an advantage. I learned a tonne about being a leader with high EQ, how to build a team and a culture that focuses on co-elevation, and creating an environment where everyone can do their best work. I’ve found that some of my best lessons are actually learned at home from my kids. This blog is my attempt to share stories about what I have learned or am learning. I hope you enjoy this corner.
Jaime Waydo