§Communication
Here are the ways of contacting me, in order of preference.
Please note: I’m open to communication, but I like being effective (though I do enjoy doing some [ridiculous and useless things](link to an appropriate page) for fun). So feel free to write me, but please get to the point right away :)
- Write an email (if you know my email address) or use the form on my contact page.
- Use asynchronous instant messenger (Discord, Matrix, Signal, Slack, Telegram, Twitter, etc).
- Use synchronous tools (Voice, Video)
In general:
- Don’t ask how I’m doing or if I can talk, get to the heart of the matter right away. If it’s inconvenient for me to talk, I’ll just reply later.
- My communication style is usually dry; don’t take it personally. If you’re cool with keeping the conversation clear and to-the-point, then trust me, I like you a lot :)
§Working with partners and collaborators
- I highly value autonomy and proactivity.
- You can contact me about any issue and concern, but think of the possible solutions/ideas/interpretations first, and lay them out in your message so that we can discuss it.
- Trying an idea and failing is ok I will help you move further without any grudges. Being idle and passive is not ok.
§If you want to have a meeting with me
I try organizing my time as effectively as possible, so I prefer asynchronicity (in this case - when people can move the subject forward without having to occupy the same space or time). I avoid meetings and calls, a strategy also adopted by some of the famous CEOs, and prefer solving things over email - or chat, for urgent matters.
Oftentimes, the solutions are found at the written discussion stage. But if we do eventually figure that a meeting or a call should take place, as many points as possible should be discussed/planned/researched in advance. We need to be clear on the agenda of the meeting, and have relevant facts and information that can be useful.
§Here’s a sample of meeting preparation.
Issue: We need to decide which tools and technologies we’ll be using in the next big project. There are some we’re already efficient with, but there are also some newer, promising ones that we have already tried but didn’t build a project around them.
Initial discussion (asynchronous): A document is created by someone on the team who lists the initial pros/cons/nuances of each technology. It is shared with people who will participate in the development, so that they can write comments, voice their opinions, add information.
Live discussion: Once the doc shows the big picture and the details/opinions, people can exchange their thoughts on Slack, to finalize the decision or to have a real-time debate. The decision is written in the summary of the doc. If they still can’t settle among themselves and need an opinion of an outsider expert, then a meeting is scheduled. (In this case, the main points of the current state of the argument are written in the summary).
Meeting or call with an expert. Beforehand, the doc with all the info and the summary is presented to the expert. The meeting should have as small number of participants as possible (others could listen, but each “camp” should select their representative for the active discussion; the rest should refrain from pitching in as much as possible).
