Recording one on one meetings can prevent gossip and promote transparency. Netflix's approach of addressing gossip directly is effective.
Different individuals have varying preferences for monotony and seek novelty differently. Recommendations from serious board gamers are important in choosing board games.
Organizational entropy can cause information to quickly become outdated. Regular checking and updating of databases is necessary to combat entropy.
Lower perceived risk in remote work by delegating tasks and recording workflows. Embrace the possibilities of remote work and explore new ways to collaborate.
Stay focused on the original topic during discussions to avoid getting off track. Be ruthless in redirecting the conversation.
Your actual priorities are reflected in how you spend your time, not in your intentions. Your calendar is a record of your true priorities.
Communicating preferences for interruptions can improve productivity and reduce disruptions during deep focus blocks. (Time 0:00:00)
The Logic Behind Recording One on One Meetings to Prevent Gossip
Key takeaways:
The recent change in recording one on ones is intended to prevent gossip.
Netflix influenced the idea of directly confronting gossip in one on one conversations.
Recordings serve as a forcing function to promote transparency within the team.
Tagging related individuals and sharing recordings helps address and resolve gossip in organizations.
Transcript:
Speaker 2
It's totally fine. What is the logic on the one on ones being recorded?
Speaker 1
So the one on ones have been recorded for a long time. The recent change, which was the sharing, the sharing, it's because the intent is that it's a forcing function to prevent gossip. One of the things we took from Netflix is whenever somebody says something to somebody else in a maybe a one on one context, where it feels like gossip about somebody else, the auto response You're supposed to give is, oh, well, what did they say when you told them about that directly? And if you don't get a good answer, that's a problem. And they have enough for at least what I've read in the book, enough antibodies in their organization to prevent that from becoming commonplace. The nice thing about recordings is that it is the forcing function that one on one, unless you say otherwise, is going to be shared with the team. And many times the EAs will tag people who are in related in the conversation. And you'll get to see gossip is what I would maybe describe as chronic inflammation of an organization. And it turns chronic inflammation into acute inflammation, which is, hey, what the hell? I heard what you said in this meeting, what was that about? And you say, wow, you're right. (Time 0:18:47)
Note: When someone is gossiping, say "What did that person say when you confronted them about this directly?"
Different strokes for different folks
Key takeaways:
Certain types of monotony can be soothing for some people, while others find it grating.
Different individuals have varying preferences and tolerances for monotony.
The speaker is relentlessly seeking novelty and gets bored easily with repetitive tasks.
The speaker can only play a board game a limited number of times before finding it boring.
Recommendations from serious board gamers are important criteria for the speaker in choosing board games to play.
Transcript:
Speaker 2
No, but I have a very high degree of sort of I find certain types of monotony very soothing. Find other types infinitely grating. Yeah, but yeah, different strokes for different folks.
Speaker 1
Maybe I could do your wrapping. Exactly. And so I'm just relentlessly novelty seeking. I really struggle to do any task more than just a handful of times. I play a lot of board games. I can usually only play a game, maybe five or 10 times before I figured out the strategy. And then it's boring. It's just like a mastery thing of, okay, well, I already know how to win most of the time.
Speaker 2
And now it's just, how do I get slightly better gamers find the good wheel closest to Sam and you'll find a lot of overflow of perfectly good board games. I got it. Okay.
Speaker 1
How do you choose your board games? Mostly through recommendations.
Speaker 2
But what are the criteria the recommenders are using before passing to you?
Speaker 1
Yeah, it's I really only play complex strategy games. So they tend to be the Euro style games. It tends to be games that if they come recommended from somebody who I know is a very serious board gamer, then I know it'll be good. So I'm playing a Twilight Imperium on Sunday, which is like a full day long board game. So Sam's recreation, you know, I do love tabletop games. (Time 0:43:05)
Organizational entropy and the battle against outdated information
Key takeaways:
There is always something out of date in company artifacts.
Organizational entropy is the concept of artifacts immediately starting to decay after creation.
To combat entropy, reinforcement mechanisms need to be put in place to keep content fresh and functional.
Regular checking and updating of databases is necessary to ensure content is up to date.
Adding more energy into the system is essential to keep entropy at bay.
Transcript:
Speaker 2
Who am I always stuff out of data? Do you throw in like favorite with an OU, just to see if people catch it? There's always something out of date.
Speaker 1
There are maybe 50 items in this. And sometimes we deprecate an old memo and replace it with a new one. Or there's some new piece of information that came about that people add in. This ties into one of the concepts that I bring up a lot in the company is organizational entropy, which is any artifact that you produce immediately starts rotting the moment that you Have created it.
Speaker 2
It's like driving a new car after a lot.
Speaker 1
Yeah, the moment that anything is published in the company, you write a memo, it is already rotting. It is already going to be out of date. And so the concept of entropy is it is always increasing. And so the only way to keep entropy at bay is you have to add more energy into the system. So you have to create reinforcement mechanisms for any piece of content that you have. If you have a database of all your memos, you have to check them every once in a while to make sure they're up to date. You need to create more energy always has to go in in order to keep things fresh and functional.
Speaker 2
What are some of the key? This is going to be a cheap question and I recognize it in advance. (Time 0:58:24)
Effective Delegation and Lowering Perceived Risk in Remote Work
Key takeaways:
Lower your perceived risk when delegating tasks by simplifying the process and recording a workflow
Remote work allows for the creation of content through computer-based activities
Remote work style offers new possibilities
Transcript:
Speaker 1
Yeah, just lower, lower your perceived risk. One of the reasons why people often fail to delegate as well is they make a lot of assumptions about how much effort is going to go into it. It's like, oh man, well, I'm gonna have to write a whole process doc and then just reduce your assumptions and just say, all right, what is the simplest thing you can do? Do all of the work that you were going to do anyway, exactly the same as you were going to do it and just turn on the Loom and record it. And just try that. It's effectively zero effort, zero cost, and you can have a three hour Loom and just share that with your EA and say, is there anything in here that you think you could do that would help Me? And almost every person that's done this is amazed at how many things come out of just a simple workflow recording like that. So just figure out how to lower the perceived risk of it. This is something that's different about remote versus in person is that when you're remote, remote first is a concept that I think GitLab came up with, which is whether you're in person Or not, you have the same principles as you would if you were remote. And if you're remote first, everything that you do is on a computer, and it is therefore necessarily content if you want it to be. And so typing at your keyboard could be content if you wanted it to. It's like a Twitch stream of your actual work, as opposed to something that you're doing in the real world where you don't have that. If you're on a Zoom call with somebody, that could just be content in a way that it wouldn't be if you're going on a walk. So really leaning into what's possible with this remote work style.
Speaker 2
Not just reading the stage play. Exactly. (Time 1:02:12)
The Rise and Fall of Blockchain Hype: Navigating Off-Topic Conversations
Key takeaways:
Blockchain was a popular topic a few years ago, now it's AI
Some people who were into blockchain have transitioned to AI
Stay focused on the original topic during discussions
Having a notepad can help redirect the conversation
Be ruthless when things get off topic
Transcript:
Speaker 1
And so there was a period, this would have been, I don't know, five, six years ago when blockchain was like the thing everyone went, now it's AI, but back then it was blockchain. I remember some of the people who were doing blockchain have pivoted into AI. Yeah, totally. I've seen the decks. The- There was a point when every dinner I did would eventually meander into blockchain, no matter the topic. And the one that was the most egregious was we did a dinner on the wine industry in San Francisco, which was really just an excuse for my friends who have vineyards to bring their nicest Bottles of wine. It was fantastic. I like how you put it on them. It was great. And somehow somebody was like, well, something, something, something, wine on the blockchain. And you have to bring them back to the conversation. People will have their thing they want to talk about, but all the other people there came for the topic that you originally planned on. And so you have to be ruthless when things get off topic. And that specific tactical thing that I found to be helpful, I always have a notepad. And so I say, that sounds like a really good topic for a future salon dinner. So I'm going to make a note right now, and I'll add that to the list.
Speaker 2
Then you just draw a picture of a dick and then move move on.
Speaker 1
Yeah, like, but let's bring it back to the topic of this. And then maybe you call on somebody else to get their opinion.
Speaker 2
Sorry, that was a big little basket. Be a basket of asking your reference for people who don't get it. (Time 1:31:04)
The Disconnect Between Stated Values and Actual Priorities
Key takeaways:
Having awareness of your values is not enough; how you spend your time reflects your actual priorities.
Your calendar is a record of your priorities and may not align with your stated values.
How you spend your time defines who you are.
Transcript:
Speaker 1
It's more than having the awareness. I was talking to somebody recently about this where we did a values exercise and they came up with a set of values that they have. And then it's a bit of a trick question because then you say, all right, let's go over your calendar and how you spent your time. And they'll say, oh, my values are friends, family, this, that. And it's like, oh, I just spend your time. It's like YouTube, Instagram. Do you notice how none of these things match? Like your actual priorities are consuming news. Your actual priority is doing sports, which is fine. There's nothing wrong with that. But empirically, your priorities are this. How you spend your time are your priorities. And that's a difficult thing for people to understand. But it really is like an epistemological problem where the example would be if you're an axe murderer, but you go your whole life and you never murder someone with an axe, are you actually An axe murderer? Like the act is what makes you what you are. Yeah, I think this is Ben Horitz's book, like what you do is who you are. That is what it is, how you spend your time. Doesn't matter. Your calendar is your priorities. Like it is the empirical record of your actual priorities. And almost everybody that I talk to, those two are not matching.
Speaker 2
So for those people listening, they might think, well, for assistance, not to be a dead horse, but I think it's maybe a semi-dead horse that's worth beating a little bit more. (Time 1:48:38)
Managing Interruptions and Deep Focus Blocks
Key takeaways:
Constant context switching can hinder productivity and disrupt flow state
Communicating preferences for interruptions can improve productivity and reduce disruptions
Different individuals have different preferences for communication and interaction
Perceptions of discipline and diligence may not always align with reality
Transcript:
Speaker 2
No, I mean, I mean like during the day.
Speaker 1
Yeah, like intraday interruptions. So like I, my phone by default is on do not disturb mode pretty much all the time. It is often in airplane mode. And so when I'm working on things, I really, really do not like getting text messages from people, like anything urgent, because this is something that I've just come to accept about Myself is that it takes a long time for things to get loaded into memory in these constant context switching. This is why I load all of my meetings on Monday. If I'm in manager mode, as opposed to maker mode, I have no issue context switching all the time. But if I'm trying to deliver something, I'm trying to write code and I get disrupted. You drop all the balls. Yeah, it's a real problem. And I feel it viscerally when I get pulled out of flow state. So I usually tell people that when you see a deep focus block on my calendar, unless it is a real emergency, don't text me. Send me a note. I'll get to it at some point. Other people are exactly the opposite, which is they say, text me anytime. And I like to be fast responder. That's my thing. Gunslingers. Yep. And there's nothing wrong with one way or the other, but just learning how to interact with different people. We found it super helpful.
Speaker 2
What else would you say about what it is like to work for you or how others perceive you?
Speaker 1
One thing that I would categorize as a misconception, which is that I'm extremely diligent and rigorous and disciplined. My default behavior is not disciplined. I've worked with some people like my former co-founder, Todd Opowski, who was in Special Forces. And he wakes up like four in the morning every day to work out for two hours. And he's one of those guys. And he just does it intrinsically. I schedule early morning meetings like 8 a.m. Breakfasts, because if I don't, I won't wake up. (Time 2:01:34)
