Holds herself to high standards and expects leaders to do the same. Actions speak louder than words.
💞 Direct, honest communication.
If something isn’t going well, let her know ASAP. Especially if something she did or said didn’t sit right with you.
👭 Relationships.
Wants to get to know her coworkers as humans (if they’re open to it).
👋 Work-life balance.
She works hard during the day, but don’t expect a response once she signs off.
Occasionally she’ll send messages when others are OOO (so she doesn’t forget to ask), but she doesn’t expect a response until they’re back on the clock.
Strengths:
🧠 Learning new things.
She does lots of research when trying to understand a new domain. Wants to understand how things work, and why they should be done a particular way.
🕵️♀️ Attention to detail.
Great at catching typos. She’s done a lot of copy editing, and it’s hard for her to turn that part of her brain off.
Finds it helpful if you tell her specifically what kind of feedback you’re looking for (so that she doesn’t get too in-the-weeds).
🤔 Asking clarifying questions.
This probably comes from being a teacher. Sometimes she asks questions if she suspects that others might be confused and are too shy to ask (even if she knows the answer herself).
She’s still feeling out the line between when it’s better to facilitate by asking questions and when it’s better to just share her own opinion directly. Sometimes conversations can be a bit round-about because she’s trying to guide folks without forcing them.
📝 Taking detailed notes.
Often found rifling through old notebooks to find a diagram she drew when she was learning about some obscure thing months ago.
This probably comes from years of being a camp counselor.
Tries to be consistently upbeat, unless she’s exceptionally tired, hangry, or frustrated.
She cares deeply about making sure that other people feel appreciated. Makes a point to bake in “warm fuzzy” appreciation activities when she’s facilitating. Tries to give positive feedback and celebrate little wins whenever possible.
Weaknesses:
🤖 Following orders she doesn’t believe in.
She has a hard time forcing herself to do work if she doesn’t understand the rationale for why it’s important.
Wants to be sure the team is doing the right thing, and that they’re doing it the right way.
🥴 Hiding her feelings.
She’s been told in the past that it’s clear when she has feelings about something. (Although sometimes she’s been told that when she wasn’t actually feeling anything.)
In the past, this has surfaced when she feels like meetings are being facilitated ineffectively or when her feedback is ignored.
🗣 Advocating for herself over others.
She has a tendency to defer to helping others, sometimes at her own expense. Sometimes has difficulty saying “no.”
When pairing, she has a hard time asking to drive, because she knows that other people learn better by doing.
Communication Style:
🧭 Thrives with frequent feedback.
Ideally a combination of what’s going well and what she can improve.
⏳ Prefers to address squishy topics sooner rather than later.
Direct communication. It’s okay if things aren’t going well, but it’s not okay if no one says anything about it.
👎 Does not respond well to teasing or jokes at her own or others’ expense (anything that needs to be couched by “no offense”, or “just kidding”).
Also includes excessive sarcasm, or making assumptions about people.
💩 Often uses emojis or GIFs to communicate.
If the meaning is ever unclear, please ask her to clarify!
Working Style:
💬 Checks Slack more frequently than email.
Try Slack first, and if it’s a more complicated issue, she’s happy to hop on a Zoom to hash it out.
🧩 Likes collaborating, especially when her work is in the problem-solving stage.
Likes brainstorming together to make sure she’s heading down the right path before going off to execute on her own.
💪 Prefers working meetings to verbal updates.
E.g., First attendees spend 5 minutes entering ideas/updates into a doc, then use doc comments to respond to each other, then summarize verbally with the whole group.
🌃 More productive in the afternoon/evening.
Decision-Making Process:
Decide what the goal is. What are we trying to improve? Why is that the right move?
Gather all the data.
Identify a few possible options for paths forward. Get feedback on the options.
Pick the option that best aligns with the initial goal.
Current Areas for Growth:
♿ Continue building accessibility expertise.
💡 Improve ability to influence.
👩🏫 Look for opportunities to teach others! (Writing, creating videos, presenting, etc.)
