My New Home at 10up

I’m  three weeks in and almost up to speed at 10up.  It has been a very productive and busy first days: meeting staff, partners, and clients, navigating Google hangouts, chat, drive, and calendar, and just figuring out what to say, to whom, and when.  Its been a long time since I’ve been thrust into something so new and different and exciting!  I’m just thrilled.

A few things that have changed for me:

• 10up is fully distributed, nationwide.  I work from my home office mostly or coffee shops or the library.  I’m really enjoying the freedoms that come with that.  I have not missed “the office” since I spend most of my day video-chatting with various people, although I do miss my co-workers from PMC.
• I’m enjoying my stand-up desk (with a chair for occasional sitting) in my beautiful home office nook.
• Video chat.  This is something that seems scary at first… my hair, my clothes, random noises, strangers, family…! But within a day or two video seems completely normal and a regular phone call feels incomplete.  That surprised me, but I think the rest of the world will eventually feel the same.
• The world of Google.  We use a lot of Google services.  I love Google.  I hear many people say “Google already knows too much about me.” But I argue that they are the only ones who actually let you know how much they know about you- that plenty of other firms/services/government know way more!
• Engineers, Designers and Geeks!  Oh my!  So many brilliant and talented folks at 10up.  Im really glad that Google is nearby to answer all my questions so that I can keep up.
• Singular job focus.  I’ve meshed all my efforts into one place.  That means I can enjoy Sacramento Beer Week without worrying about how the calendar is functioning, I will flip to learning more about web rather than teaching (sometimes) and I wont take on any more freelance jobs because I simply won’t have time.  This scared me at first, but now I feel free (whee)!
• A myriad of communication methods: chat, video calls, voice calls, email, conference calls… its funny that when someone says Ill send that to you, I’m sometimes unsure where to expect it.