Q people

How do you stay sharp?

Mostly coffee. But also breaks—I like to hike, garden and camp, which allows me to take tech/internet breaks so that when I come back to work/the computer to tackle a task I am always refreshed and ready to go. I also love a good podcast, and am always open to suggestions of fun ones or process-related ones!

What quality do you most value in your teammates?

Trustworthiness. I want my teammates to be able to come to me to talk about anything. Made a mistake? Okay, let’s find the fix together. Not sure how to do something? No worries, let’s find out who does! And I like to know I can give a task to someone and they will complete it on time and as expected or raise their hand when there is an issue. Communication is the most important thing to ALL relationships inside and outside the office, and if we trust each other then those conversations are easier.

Would you rather go into outer space or to the depths of the ocean? Why?

Depths of the ocean. We know there are monsters down there, we know that we haven’t explored it all, and we know what can go wrong … but outer space is still very unknown. We haven’t and won’t be able to explore all of it. It’s full of mystery, and for me it’s better left that way. I’ll go with the water, pretend I’m a mermaid, and what happens happens.

What is the last book you read and would you recommend it?

Pet Sematary by Stephen King. It’s full of dread, and is almost better if you KNOW what’s going to happen, because it of course starts like most good horror—with a family, having a fresh start, living life in the honeymoon period of a new town, new house … and it makes you care and fall in love with the characters before Stephen King drops in the terror.

I would recommend this book for people who like horror and are comfortable with the premise, but I think it could really mess with someone with small kids who doesn’t do horror well.