Originally published on Butterfly Mind, February 2016. Effective executives focus on outward contributions. They gear their efforts to results rather than to work. They start out with the question, "What results are expected of me?" rather than with the work to be done. -- Peter F. Drucker, The Effective Executive I love checklists. I love … Continue reading What can I contribute?
Originally published on Butterfly Mind, December 2015. As I help organize the inaugural SupConf, a conference for people who want to make a career in support, I've been thinking a lot about what a career looks like, and what a career is. At the company I work for, Automattic, there is no ladder to climb … Continue reading What is a career?
Originally published on Butterfly Mind, December 2015. I did it. I spoke at WordCamp US. All those rehearsals, all that planning -- they paid off. When I got up on stage, I saw my teammates' faces in the front row and in the way back, and then I looked around the rest of the room, … Continue reading I am hooked
Originally published on Butterfly Mind, September 2015. A little over a year ago, I submitted work for a writing gig that I was sure I was a great fit for. I was deep into my writing habit, and I knew the work I submitted was good. When I never heard back -- a fate even … Continue reading One year Automattiversary
Originally published on Butterfly Mind, August 2015. I recently listened to the TED Radio Hour's episode, Amateur Hour, which shared several funny and insightful stories of people in positions as novices. One story was about a "professional amateur," A.J. Jacobs, writer and editor-at-large of Esquire magazine, who lives his life as an experiment. He constantly … Continue reading The joys of being an amateur
Originally published on Butterfly Mind, June 2015. I've written ad nauseam about how I'd one day like to have a room of my own. A room where I can write, where I can work, where I can think. With our new house, it has finally happened. In our first week at the new place, I … Continue reading A room of my own
In the month of October, I focused a large portion of my extracurricular work time on training new Automatticians and Happiness Engineer trials. We covered tools, tickets, tone - and in every session, a trainee taught me something new. This is a reason I love to teach. The joy of a student's discovery is always … Continue reading The student is the teacher: helping out in Blogging 101
Andrea Badgley 