Accountability sticks when it’s specific and small. Replace “Do better” with “Ship draft by Wednesday 5pm.” If it slips, ask what constraint blocked it and shrink the next commitment. No moralizing, just design.
The first two months set posture. The job isn’t heroics—it’s clarity. Outcomes the company expects from CS. Two or three leading indicators we’ll live and die by. Cadences that expose reality fast. What I do: – Map just enough of the current journey to find leverage, then stop mapping and run plays. – Publish a…
If execution crowds out thinking, block two 90‑minute “maker” sessions per week. Protect them like meetings. No Slack, no email. Use them for deep work or walking reviews. Most teams don’t need more hours; they need more unbroken ones.
Schedule hard cognitive work in your high‑energy window and admin in the trough. Track your peaks for a week and align work accordingly. Calendar math that ignores energy is why good plans die.
Write a one‑pager you can actually use: mission, the three outcomes that matter this quarter, weekly cadences, and “stop doing” items. Re‑read Monday morning. If it doesn’t change your week, trim it until it does.