I typically get in around 9am and leave somewhere around 5:30-6pm Mountain time in the US. This floats ~30 minutes day to day but I tend to stick to a relatively predictable schedule. I will flex my schedule for certain meetings, but prefer to have calls in the evening as opposed to the morning. I'm not a very capable human being until I've had my ☕
I tend to start the morning by reviewing comms and responding to pings that have come in overnight. Once that is all done, I dig into client work and run through to lunch. From there I work another 3-4 hours on client work and might wrap up with some communications or extra reading.
I tend to work from a co-working space of some kind, but that changes by the month. I have a space setup with my big screen, a standing desk, etc. but sometimes other conversations will bleed in as I don't have a dedicated office of my own. If I have a call that's personal for either of us or sensitive, I'll go walk and talk about town.
I also work from home once a week/every other week when the occasion allows. If I'm traveling, I'll work from a kitchen table, coffee shop, or occasionally a short-term coworking space.
I work with capable noise-cancelling headphones on becuase I prefer to work unencumbered and without distractions. My music controls my pace and type of work so I'm pretty finicky about what's playing and how that affects my pace. I will sometimes turn Slack off entirely as knowing it is on and could have updates is very distracting to me.
The amount of communication you'll hear from me is often dependent upon the client we're working on and the timezone spread. I'm happiest simply working away on a deep, difficult problem. However, I ❤ helping people and am almost always OK with helping you with your question as soon as I can. If I'm really pressed for time or concentration, I will simply turn all comms off and check them at lunch and on breaks to control the inflow.
I dive in 100% when I'm on a client project. Therefore, it will take some time to get a meta task from me that doesn't involve a current client that I am working on such as a fix to a library or some text for a case study. I really do want to work on meta tasks, but generally do not have time whilst on clients. I will get to your task as soon as I can!
I am happy to discuss issues in Slack, but find it far easier to talk anything complex over a Slack or Zoom call. I find that talking through allows faster feedback and iteration and allows me to get/give more nuanced feedback. I also use GitHub issues and try to be as verbose as possible. I'm generally flexible enough to communicate how you would like to communicate, but lean towards Slack or a call.
I also work very, very hard to eliminate all distractions and all notices of communication. This means that I prefer to have less, but more meaningful notifications from GitHub and Slack. That little blue dot in GitHub is my enemy - and I keep it off almost all day by ruthlessly reading or clicking off everything that comes through (it's a blessing and a curse). Please do not ping me in GH or another channel unless absolutely necessary.
I appreciate direct feedback, with reasoning as to why. I prefer to hear the honest truth and fix any issue before it bubbles over. Even if I get defensive (rarely) I will deeply consider your feedback and thank you for giving it. I can be quite stubborn, but also tend towards the logical end of the spectrum. If you're right I will always come around, but I might need to talk it out to really internalize your reasoning.
- I work hard and try as hard as I can to fulfill expectations.
- I am very detail-oriented. I do miss things, but I try as hard as I can to be as thorough.
- Communication overwhelm.
- Little red and little blue dots telling me something has happened.
- Problems and people that challenge me.
- Long, deep one-one conversations (I would love to have chat sometime!).
- JavaScript & pretty, interactive designs.
- #teamCoffee.
I'm an Ennegram 1 (also close to a 6) and am a Beaver, secondarily Lion