Remote Manager Playbook
👋 Hey, y’all
Working with a remote, distributed, and asynchronous team necessitates a handbook-first approach. All the information that you need should be easily discoverable and consumable.
Transparency is key. I want to ensure you understand how I work and what I expected. We should all communicate our values and approaches clearly to eliminate any guesswork about our thoughts or what we should be doing.
This playbook is a collection of living documents. I will be updating it as things come up and change. If there is something you would like to see added or clarified let me know, feel free to even open an issue or PR.
🥖 My role
I am not here to make sure you do your job, I am here to make sure you can do your job.
My role is to guide people, teams, and organizations towards achieving their goals and fostering growth. I want my team to flourish in their lives, not just at work. I aim for you to feel happy, healthy, fulfilled, productive, and accomplished. I strive for you to feel that you are great at your job and possess the knowledge required to be effective and self-sufficient. I am here to support you in all of this.
💎 What do I value most
- Holistic development. We are not just employees, we’re people. Everything in life is a cycle. Our work life influences our personal life and vice versa. Strive for a healthy work-life cycle. Let your successes in one fuel the other.
- Growth mindset. I want to see you grow in your role, in your career, and as a person. Work with me to set and achieve goals for where you want to be in life.
- Outcomes and results. Everything we do should be focused on the outcome, we can figure out how to get there together. Start with the results we want and work backwards to figure out the best way to get there.
- Collaboration. Our collective goal is to grow and deliver value. Let’s work together with our team and partners to achieve these goals. Don’t work in a silo and communicate frequently.
- Feedback. I am always open to receiving feedback so share it whenever you like and as much as possible. I have no issue with public feedback so feel free to do so whenever the situation comes up.
💖 Personal values
- Simplicity
- Serenity
- Freedom and independence
- Learning
- Creativity
- Human relationships
- Nature
🏗️ How I operate
- My typical work hours are Monday - Friday, 8am - 4pm Eastern. I am usually unavailable outside these hours, with work notifications turned off. If you have my personal number and need me, don’t hesitate to text.
- Organization is crucial for me. I rely heavily on my calendar, notebooks, and task lists.
✅ My Expectations
- Keep your word. If something comes up that makes this impossible, let me know. Shit happens, let’s figure it out together.
- Be honest and transparent.
- Continuously learn and grow.
- Focus. Limit your work in progress (WIP) and prioritize what is important. Prioritizing tasks and limiting multitasking leads to better results.
- Maintain a healthy balance between work and personal life. Prioritize your mental health and what you value.
😈 Personality quirks
- I am quite forgetful. If I do not write something down, there’s a good chance I’ll forget it. If you don’t see me make a note of something important, please say something.
- I have narcolepsy. If you see me yawn, I’m not bored, just tired. If you see me get up and move around, it’s to maintain my attention and wakefulness.
- I like to think and process information before acting. If we are having a conversation and I’m quiet for a bit I am doing just that. I normally will saying something like “processing…”.
🏍️ Personal life
I live in Knoxville, TN with my wife, our 3 kids, our dog, and our cat. I love to read, swim, be in nature, play video games, read tarot, playing the banjo, and ride my motorcycle. I don’t love leaving my house.
📚 Index
Communication
Growth
Meetings
Process
Product
Reviews
Strategy
Team