My career hasn’t followed a straight line and I've learned to do a lot of different stuff. The winding path that got me here makes resumes uncomfortable.

So your boss sucks. They play favorites. They make arbitrary decisions and everyone knows they have no idea what they’re doing. They change rules on a whim. You’re right. Your boss sucks. But they’re probably not doing anything illegal. They're just bad at their job.

Hiring the right people is only one ingredient to elite operations. Excellence is also about preventing the circumstances that leave room for mistakes. The procedures for putting down the CAUTION WET FLOOR signs that prevent the slip-and-falls of history. 

Maybe you made a mistake. Maybe you weren't quite ready. Maybe you had a lot going on. I know it feels awful, but I promise, no one thinks you’re a failure. Believe it or not, someone probably took great care in what happened to you. Because they know it wasn't all your fault. They wanted this to be as easy for you as possible.

What even is a job posting for a Founder? Wouldn't you just... like... start your company? Without anyone telling you that you can't? Isn't that what being a founder is?

Truth: Working at a startup is different from working at a BigCo Inc. Myth: There’s some magical secret to it.

What started as a step back became a growth hack. When it came time to brand my service, I knew exactly what I was good at, where there was a gap, and what people would pay for. 

We’ve all been there. You dust off the old resume and break out in a cold sweat. You write what you think you’re supposed to. Two days or minutes later, the rejection comes. Or your boss tells you you haven’t demonstrated the skills yet. Not because you’re underqualified. Because you’re too specific and you’re expecting people to see the same depth behind the words as you do.