Postcards from Dorkland

I have a confession. I'm a dork, pretty much always have been. One of the amazing things about being a grown up is that this can be so joyfully embraced. I can "like" Excel and comment about Pivot Tables. And most of my life is joyfully spent in Dorkland with my brilliant co-workers and delightfully type-A friends. We can brainstorm product features for highly technical products and we can spreadsheet summer camps for our kids. 

I spent this week at a marketing conference which compared to the industry events I usually attend is like the cool-kid-table. There are celebrities, comedians, production value and just a general energy that you don't typically find at highly technical obscure industry events. It is awesome and inspiring and even as I write that I giggle to myself. I (along with 13,000 others) waited outside of sessions like groupies to catch technical leaders and marketing experts. And of the star studded events available, my favorites were ones that were tactical, technical and well - let's face it delightfully dorky! Perhaps, this is really just a different island of Dorkland!

And as a grown up and a professional, you find the space, the industry and the culture that matches who you are. For me, it tends to involve technology solving hard problems and the kinds of (fellow dorky) people that get a kick out that. But there's more. The teams that I have loved, flourished on, built amazing things with are made up of nice people who generally get along. And even as a grown up, that matters.

In post interview round-ups of people that we typically don't hire, occassionally the topic of whether a candidate can be successful at their job and add value to our company if we don't like them. Just someone that you wouldn't want to have a drink with, or that rubs some of us the wrong way, or not a culture fit. And without exception, despite being smart and capable, the answer is no.

We can all feel when people don't like us. It doesn't require words or actions. Everyone can be perfectly well behaved (though they hardly ever are) but if two people don't get along the whole room, the whole team can feel it. The converse is true as well - just liking someone is not enough. I have had a few co-workers over the years that I have liked tremendously, as humans, but for a variety of reasons, in the function they are in, it doesn't work.

The worst part of being a parent is that you can see these dynamics in your kids and their friends generally before they can. Before they can see nice vs. cool. Before they can see friendly vs. trouble. You can see it all. Before they can embrace what they love, who they are, what they enjoy despite what anyone thinks. Before smart and dorky becomes okay, it is just smart and dorky. 

And the best you can do is send them postcards from Dorkland and let them know that they are doing okay!

Thanks for reading!