This is Part 11 of a weekly series on my growth and development at a software startup in Austin Texas. Click here to view the full series or start at Level 1.
A climactic ending.
Level Eleven Stats
Weapons gained:
- Experience + 6: I’ve become very comfortable having conversations with our customers over the phone. It helps that I know our product better now, but I’m also getting to know our customers. Our customers in a general sense of the word, but also specific customers that we have. Learning what certain people need us to do that others don’t. What one person expects that another hates. Learning the ins and outs of the people I talk to every day.
- Connections + 2: This was another smaller week on the connections. However, a couple of homeless people that I had gotten to know but disappeared for a while reappeared so that made my day last Monday. I’ve formed some relationships with several of the people I see daily, so it’s always good to see them and hear how they’re doing each day.
- Ability + 4: I had a day with 7 meetings this week. It revealed a bit about my workflow and how to get work done in short periods of time since I only had a few minutes between each meeting to prepare for the next. Something to continue working on, but I felt pretty good about being able to prepare for each of these meetings and create productive outcomes.
- Knowledge + 8: I am continuing to learn a ton about RPA (Robotic Processing Automation), and how it fits into our company and customers. It’s been fun being able to bring it up in conversation with customers and hear from them how it might be able to help their workflows. Hopefully in a future post, I’ll do a writeup of RPA and what it looks like since it’s kind of just taking off and not many people know about it.
- Discipline + 2: Had some very odd sleep schedules this week all for really good reasons, but still, it got me off of some of my normal disciplines. I still managed to get up every workday morning and do my normal routine, but my evenings and days probably suffered in this area because of some late nights.
- Organization + 8: So many meeting this week was definitely an organizational feat. I think I didn’t fully realize what I was doing when I scheduled the meetings, but then when this week came, I was like. Oh. I guess I better figure out how to do this.
- Strength + 4: I’ve continued doing a very simple workout each morning and have been able to increase my reps every single day since I started. I’m starting to really enjoy getting up in the mornings and doing it and I’m thinking about adding some other things to it soon. Not too much cardio this week, but still a solid week of strength building.
Kills: I finished this week off with a bang. Friday came with two potentially huge deals. One that could potentially really shift the direction of where some of the focus of the company is going and another that could start adding a consistent increase in revenue in the next couple of years.
Deaths: Once again didn’t achieve my goal on support videos. I did one this week and my goal was two and I need to get better at setting a time to do these so that they get done.
Outside the Game
Had a fantastic time visiting friends (who are basically family) in Dallas this weekend. It rejuvenated my soul to keep going.
As I mentioned before, I was reunited with some of my homeless friends this week which made me incredibly happy.
Lot’s of thoughts and plans going through my head right now as I figure out and contemplate what my future of working looks like working at my company. Especially when it comes to the geographic location that I will do it from. Will keep updated.
Final Takeaways
It was a fantastic week full of almost all good things and it seemed like it only got better the longer the week went along.
My main goal right now is just that this next week wouldn’t be a crash and burn after last week. I want to keep coming out strong not holding any punches back.
I want to make my company some money and I want to help our customers conquer their problems.
Let’s go week 12.