Judgment

When I fill every available hour, the work and people already depending on me receive less attention. N minus 1 is my reminder to question the next commitment.

A useful question makes the subject easier to examine. It gives people a clear way to describe an example, a disagreement or a decision.

A short comment can bring a discussion to the problem people have been avoiding. I have learned to stay with it long enough to understand what the person means.

I kept sounding confident after the facts had begun to change. The business needed me to admit what I did not know.

My constant corrections were making the team cautious. I wanted people to take responsibility, but I was making it easier for them to wait for me.

After the startup failed, I could explain the timing, the market and the lack of funds. It was harder to ask how well I had understood the customer.

I kept borrowing as the business declined. Rebuilding meant facing the debt and what my decisions had cost the team.