Seven tips for transitioning into a leadership role
Plus, celebrating 20 years in DC
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It’s a stormy morning out here on the Eastern Shore. I was going to check the crab pots this morning, but that will have to wait until later today.
Last night I had a hard time falling asleep. Right before I went to bed, I was trying to figure out the exact date I had moved to Washington, DC, in 2003. I didn’t have Facebook then so I couldn’t check that. My old Hotmail account was worthless. But then, I remembered that last year I had scanned in my journals. That’s when I found this (excuse the glitter pen 😂):
I wrote the other week about my reflections on time and how things don’t feel so linear regarding technology and politics, so I won’t repeat them here. But, the whole reason this anniversary came up for me is an interview I did recently with my friend Lori Brewer Collins. Lori has a new newsletter and podcast called “Lori on Leadership.” As she describes, “Subscribing to “Lori On Leadership” means you get to listen to brilliant, quietly successful leaders tell their stories and share what they’ve learned about transforming organizations and the world.”
I’m her guest this week, where we discuss my career journey and what I learned in moving from an individual contributor role to a manager at Facebook. I encourage you to check out the whole podcast, but here are seven tips she pulled out from our conversation:
“Is this the best use of my time?” Your job has shifted from "doing the work” to "helping remove roadblocks” for those who are doing the work. That means you have to give people enough direction and strategy—without micromanaging. Point them towards your company and team’s “North Star” and empower them to figure out how to get there.
“What are my principles as a manager?” These should guide everything you do and say. I have three: 1) transparency; 2) two-way, real-time feedback; and 3) people are in the driver’s seat of their own career. That means, as much as I can, I will tell a team member what’s going on, even if that means saying, “I can’t disclose everything I’m aware of to you.” If something’s not working, either of us can bring it up in the moment, talk about it, address it. I will also want to hear your solutions and what work you’re interested in doing. I’ll be your wing woman to help you think those through and find opportunities.
“Can I be honest and vulnerable here?” Everyone has different communication styles. That said, there’s something about being vulnerable and honest with your team, especially when they may not be wild about what’s happening or the decisions being made. It helps them realize you are trying to do the best you can—and that you are human too.
“Can I involve people in the decisions that affect them?” When change comes down from the top, give your people the opportunity to give feedback on the process. Make them feel heard. Ask them questions. Help them understand why the decision was made and, when possible, make adjustments to the change process based on their feedback. They’ll be more likely to stick around and stay on your team.
“Is this one of those really impossible trade-off situations?” Sometimes you’re going to want two potential outcomes—but you can’t have both. You know there will be severe consequences whichever way you go. Don’t stick your head in the sand: the answer will usually be found somewhere in the gray zone between those two outcomes. Explore possibilities in the middle. Create a grid to evaluate all the different aspects of your decision: put your criteria on the X axis and a series of options across the y axis. Map out the possibilities, as objectively as you possibly can. Then bring in additional perspectives. You may need to adjust your map. After you decide, step back from time to time and ask, “Is this working—or not? Is this growing and building? Or do I need to make changes?”
“Do you trust your team—and do they trust you enough to tell you when something’s wrong?” Everyone wins when you create a work environment where people are not afraid to come to you with bad news. We are all operating in uncertainty and ambiguity. Your job includes being clear about what you can and cannot control, admitting when things go sideways, standing up for your team, and coming up with a fix.
“What do people say about me as a leader?” This can give you insights into things about your leadership that you may want to change or amplify. With me, people wonder when I sleep. Responsiveness, being there for people when they need me, is a big part of who I am as a leader—and so I answer emails and texts promptly.
Bonus Content
If you want to get really wonky into tech policy, check out my former colleague Richard Allan’s podcast with Nicklas Lundblad called Regulate Tech. Richard is in the House of Lords and is in the thick of it right now with the UK online safety bill. In their latest podcast, Richard shares some reflections on now being the one lobbied versus the one lobbying. He has some good tips - especially for those who think how things work in Congress is the same for the rest of the world … it is not. Two points they made that I want to pull out:
Congress is the exception versus the rule of how policymaking happens around the world. In the UK, it's too late if you only start engaging once a bill is in front of Parliament. That’s the end of the process, whereas most negotiations happen before the bill arrives. In Congress, however, many negotiations start after a bill is introduced.
Policy teams need a venture capital policy portfolio. Some policy team members need to take a long view to get ahead and influence issues. What are the ten emerging issues you are engaging on so you can shape them now? Only a few might become a thing, but you’ll be ahead of the curve on them.
What I’m Reading
Washington Post: Threads follows Twitter in limiting number of posts that users can see
Axios: Axios: Local TV stations form new coalition to urge streaming reform
Reuters: TikTok to perform stress test ahead of EU Digital Services Act
Washington Post: Meta is done moderating. On Threads, users decide what they see.
Facebook: Meta and Microsoft Introduce the Next Generation of Llama
The Hill: Top exec at Trump's Truth Social resigns
The Hill: GOP targets Meta's Threads
Foreign Policy: Opinion - Free Speech Social Media Doesn’t Exist
Roll Call: Can Threads replace Twitter as the political watercooler?
Telegram: Surpasses 800 million users
Calendar
🚨NEW 🚨
July 19, 2023 - Netflix Earnings Call
July 25, 2023 - Microsoft Earnings Call
July 26, 2023 - Meta Earnings Call
August 3, 2023 - Apple Earnings Call
Google and Amazon have not announced their earning call dates yet.
Topics to keep an eye on:
TV shows about Facebook - Doomsday Machine and second season of Super Pumped
Mid-July - Code of practice on disinformation platform reports due
July 2023 – Sudan election (likely to have further changes due clashes erupted mid-April, despite temporary humanitarian ceasefire,)
July 23, 2023 – Cambodia election
July 23, 2023 - Spain Election
August 10 - 13, 2023 - Defcon
August 20, 2023 - Guatemala runoff
August 21, 2023 - Meta responses to Oversight Board recommendations in Brazil election case due
August 23, 2023 - Zimbabwe Election
August-2023 – Eswatini election
August 23, 2023 - First GOP Presidential Primary Debate
August 28, 2023 - Meta response due to Oversight Board decision on Cambodian Prime Minister
August - End of UK parliamentary session. Must pass Online Safety Bill by then.
Mid-September: All Tech Is Human - Responsible Tech Summit NYC
September 10, 2023: Russia to hold elections in four Ukrainian provinces
September 19, 2023 - UN General Assembly high-level debate begins
September 27-29, 2023: Athens Democracy Forum
September 28-29, 2023 - Trust & Safety Research Conference
TBD September: Atlantic Festival
TBD September: Unfinished Live
September 2023 – Bhutan election
September 2023 – Tuvalu election
September 9, 2023 – Maldives election
September 28-29, 2023 - The Atlantic Festival
September 30, 2023 – Slovakia election
September 2023 – Rwanda election
October 2023 – Oman election
October 2023 Poland election
October 8, 2023 – Pakistan election
October 10, 2023 – Liberia election
October 14, 2023 – New Zealand election
October 22, 2023 – Switzerland election
October 29, 2023 – Argentina election
October 2023 – Gabon election
October 2023 – Ukraine election
November 15, 2023 - Aspen Cyber Summit
November 20, 2023 – Marshall Islands election
November 29, 2023 – Argentina election
December 1-3, 2023: Build Peace 2023 Conference
December 20, 2023 – Democratic Republic of the Congo election
December 2023 –Togo election
2023 or 2024 – Peru election
TBD – Dominica election
TBD – Luxembourg election
TBD – Myanmar election
TBD – Spain election
TBD – Gabon election
TBD – Madagascar election
TBD – Haiti election
TBD – Libya election
TBD – Singapore election
2024
January 15, 2024 - Iowa GOP Caucus
January 2024 – Bangladesh election
January 2024 – Finland election
January 13, 2024 – Taiwan election
February 4, 2024 – El Salvador election
February 4, 2024 – Mali election
February 14, 2024 – Indonesia election
February 25, 2024 – Senegal election
February 25, 2024 – Belarus election
March 17, 2024 – Russia election
March 31, 2024 – Ukraine election
April 10, 2024 – South Korea election
April 2024 – Solomon Islands election
April 2024 – Maldives election
May 5, 2024 – Panama election
May 19, 2024 – Dominican Republic election
June 2024 – Mongolia election
June 6-9, 2024 - EU Parliament Elections
July 7, 2024 – Mexico election
July 15 - 18, 2024 - Republican National Convention
August 19 - 22, 2024 - Democratic Convention, Chicago
October 27, 2024 – Uruguay election
October 2024 – Mozambique election
October 2024 – Chad election
November 2024 – Guinea Bissau election
November 2024 – Moldova election
November 2024 – Romania election
November 5, 2024 – United States of America election
November 12, 2024 – Palau election
December 2024 – Croatia election
TBD – Algeria election
TBD – Austria election
TBD – Belgium election
TBD – Botswana election
TBD – Burkina Faso election
TBD – Chad election
TBD – Comoros election
TBD – Croatia election
TBD – Dominica election
TBD – Egypt election
TBD – Ethiopia election
TBD – Georgia election
TBD – Ghana election
TBD – Iceland election
TBD – India election
TBD – Iran election
TBD – Jordan election
TBD – Kiribati election
TBD – Kuwait election
TBD – Lithuania election
TBD – Madagascar election
TBD – Mauritania election
TBD – Mauritius election
TBD – Montenegro election
TBD – North Korea election
TBD – North Macedonia election
TBD – Romania election
TBD – Rwanda election
TBD – San Marino election
TBD – Slovakia election
TBD – South Africa election
TBD – South Sudan election
TBD – Syria election
TBD – Tunisia election
TBD – United States of America election
TBD – Uzbekistan election
TBD – Venezuela election