My Operating Principles.

“If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters.” I use a simple test: would this make my mom proud? If the answer is “no”, then the answer is “no”.

“It’s the behavior in the halls, not the posters on the walls”. How do people speak to each other? Does every QBR require weekend work? Who is emailing at 11pm? These are not objectively good or bad, but they ARE your culture. What you ignore, you endorse.

Look for where friction is accidental vs deliberate and tune accordingly. Hidden frictions (misalignment, lack of prioritization, chaos / noise, unclear owners, etc) are everywhere and the hardest ones to spot are the ones you’re creating yourself.

Accountability only works when it sits with those who have decision authority. Finance is a lot of things, but is not a scapegoat for operational execution.

Conflict is a sign of life; combat is a sign of dysfunction. Disagree calmly. De-escalate when things heat up. You don’t need to swing at every pitch, and you don’t need to be an asshole to make your point. Respect costs nothing and wins everything.

Honest dialogue is a prerequisite for good decision-making. When people are afraid to speak plainly about real risks, leadership is already operating on fiction. Seek truth over comfort.

Unsustainable results create an addiction cycle. Unsustainable systems accumulate risk. Unsustainable ways of working eventual break people. Whatever the case, it does not end well.