Not that there’s anything wrong with that
UX Dailies
I worked from home for two days this week. Normally I prefer to be colocated with my team. Normally my team prefers that as well. But in this specific circumstance, my team was at a local conference soaking up ideas from other like-minded and similarly engaged individuals, without me. And I really didn’t feel that left out. Until we all got back.
The heads down working on a single task, with minimal interruption, and music at maximum volume, was great. There are times when that is absolutely necessary to get you thru work that is less appealing to the more curious parts of your brain. In this case I was working on documenting a proposal to pitch. The hard parts were sorted out, I just needed to summarize them in a slide deck. Not super dull, but stuff I was getting distracted from easily at the office. The focus time was needed. Perfect timing for WFH.
Then this morning I came in, and there it was. The recognition that a good chunk of my team had a common experience without me. The boon of my isolation had also left me feeling isolated. Not “nobody likes me” isolation, more like “I got back from a couple of sick days, and picked up on an inside joke and had to ask about it because I didn’t catch the reference” isolation. And you realize that even though they are perfectly willing to explain, it will never hold the same meaning for me. It was that kind of a day today. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
The other side of that coin is a recognition that I really like this team. I WANT to be engaged with them in building a great product; Helping them recognize and overcome hurdles; Recognizing their potential and the value they bring to the group.
We are at a pivotal moment for our product. The kind of moment where we get to decide how it should work. The opportunity to not just rewrite the product, but the process to creating that product. We get to have a say in our future. The authors of our own destiny so to speak. Those opportunities don’t come around very often in the world of enterprise. I’m excited for what is now. I’m excited to see what this team can come up with as we hit this threshold.
I really, really, like this team.
