SWLW #596: SRE and the art of improvisation, The power of celebration, and more.

Like always, sharing my best findings for the week. 

 

This Week's Favorite

I Gave This Talk to My Team a Few Years Ago and I Find Myself Constantly Referencing It - Feels Like It Might Be Valuable for Founders Building Their Own Company, and Those That Try to Better Understand Our Mindset and Culture Inside of Shopify (Video)
28 minutes read.

Tobi Lutke, Shopify's CEO, is one of our generation's best entrepreneurs and leaders. Even though he doesn't get the same coverage, he's on the same level as Elon and Mark. Playing the long-term game can shift your thinking and help you look for positive-sum opportunities. This talk is also an excellent example of how to draw a narrative and present helpful stories for a company of thousands of employees.

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Culture

Backend Engineers When You Let Them Manage Designs
1 minute read.

My humble effort to help you start the weekend with a smile on your face.

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The Power of Celebration: A Greatly Underutilized Business Tool
8 minutes read.

Celebrating more using Roger Martin's "trinity of happiness" is a great way to arrange your next team event: "Celebration is an important business tool. Don’t be like most companies and underutilize it. Take the time to design your celebration to boost the trinity of happiness of your team and you will be generously rewarded."

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Startups Need Dual Theories on Distribution and Product/Market Fit. One Is Not Enough
7 minutes read.

This post by Andrew Chen should be a must-read for any member of a young startup (first 50 employees) or a future entrepreneur. It's so easy to think that the world needs your solution and is waiting for it, to realize you're building something nobody wants or is willing to pay for with their time or money. This is maybe the most important lesson you learn, and it's hard to get right even if it's not your first attempt: "Dual insights needed: (1) an insight about customers that gives them product/market fit (2) an insight about distribution that creates traction." -- so, what would you do to ensure your entire team works together to solve it? This is not a marketing problem, a sales problem, or a product problem. It's everyone's problem.

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Startup = Ambition
4 minutes read.

I like the framing of Vikas Paruchuri of startups as it opens up more opportunities to build businesses and create value for customers. We often live in a box we set for ourselves, so being an observer and choosing a different framing (words to define our meaning) can often shift our path to success.

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Peopleware

Site Reliability Engineering and the Art of Improvisation
5 minutes read.

"Practices begin to look like performances and vice versa. It’s a lot like improvising jazz, where the gig is merely another time to get together and play." -- I love the 5 tools Matt Davis shared to let the team play together, learn, teach, and iterate. Try taking a few of them and practice internally. I'd start with "Walkthroughs of observability toolsets" and "Spin the Wheel of Expertise!"

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Your Calendar Is Your to-Do List (Video)
8 minutes read.

The nice thing you discover as you're getting older (I recently turned 40) is that all systems and tools, like all models, suck. The beauty is that for some, they are very useful, so the challenge is to gather enough of these and experiment until you're happy with it. At least for a few months, until you decide it's no good and iterate again. That's normal. Treating your calendar as your to-do list (instead of your inbox) is good advice for some at some point in their career (for me - now). Is it good for you? Sam Corcos covers the tactics.

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Why Bad CEOs Fear Remote Work
5 minutes read.

This post was written during COVID-19 but is still very relevant in 2024. Many companies are now trying to understand where they should land regarding having an office, a clear policy, and whether or not to enforce people's attendance. Leadership based on fear is ineffective when playing the long-term game. It doesn't mean working remotely is the solution - many people, myself included, wouldn't like it. Focus on what makes sense to you and the people you want to attract and retain. Don't be shy or apologetic about it. There are many ways to build companies without trying to convince your way is the best way.

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And finally, inspiring tweets...

@aymanalabdul: Life of a Founder: 9:57am: On the brink of bankruptcy. 10:23am: Crush a sales call. 10:32am: We’re going to IPO next year

@ankurnagpal: Before accepting a startup job offer with equity, make sure you ask the company for: (1) Strike price (2) Last preferred share price (price investors paid) (3) Total number of shares (4) Liquidation preferences. This will allow you to calculate the % of the company you own & value it
 


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Keep reading, keep learning.
-- Oren Ellenbogen.