Manifesto

You and I, as humans

Kindness

Kindness is a gift we can share with each person we meet. It ripples and spreads quickly, propagating to build a gentler world. It’s our responsibility to extend our hands and lift another up.

Integrity

Our words and actions affect those around us. Each word that you utter influences another person. Words have power. They can lift someone or tear them down. How you live your life, conduct your business, or interact in your world shows others who you are. Live with integrity. Be of good character. Be honest and sincere.

Humility

A humble person values the needs of others. You value a mission, movement, idea, and life. Your focus is not on the obtainment of stuff or position, or power. It’s not focused on how to make yourself more dominant or important. A humble person is not one to measure a person by how they look.

Humility fosters a kind, generous, and respectful world. I seek to humbly serve.

Respect, even when we do not agree

Every human being has value. Each person has a different perspective that is uniquely his or hers. We combine our differences to make a better community and world. But it requires each of us to respect one another.

Contributing to a better world

Our world is dependent upon each of us actively contributing to it. We have the power to shape what it is and how it affects us. I believe in making it a better place for all.

Education for all

Knowledge gives us power, unlocks our potential, and stimulates our creativity. Education is our mechanism to spread knowledge. The power of education is not just to pass history onto one another. It’s the sharing of ideas and inspiring each of us to think, explore, and consider. When we learn, we are making the information our own, adapting it for our perception and realities. It becomes a part of us.

Each mind deserves free education. Our world needs each of us to contribute. I believe each human being is bright, capable, and full of opportunity and potential. It’s our duty to cultivate and make education available for all.

Open, secure, innovative, and inclusive technology and science

You and I may be at different ends of the world, but we are connected together. Technology and science provide the means for us to communicate, share ideas, and learn from one another. The internet is the medium that connects us all together. We have access to incredibly amounts of information. We can do business throughout the world because of it. Knowledge is at our fingertips simply by exploration. The internet lets us travel throughout our world to places we would likely never physically go.

Ours is a technological world. It impacts our lives from streamlining our favorite television shows to email to video conferencing and to live conferences. We bank online. We learn online. We shop online. We do business online. The internet enriches our lives.

I am a woman of science. I believe in technology and innovation. It’s our responsibility to ensure our advances are stable, secure, and safe. Privacy, security, and safety are not optional. STEM should be inclusive regardless of your gender, religion, color, beliefs, orientation, the way you look, or the clothes you wear.

I believe our lives are better through innovation. Let’s make it available and safe for all. And let’s make it inclusive for all to contribute. And I believe in a free internet, as this is our global public resource. Period.

Silliness and laughter

Humans need to play. We need to laugh and release the negativity in our lives. Being silly was so easy when we were children. Somewhere along the way, we locked that part of ourselves away. Through our play, we were creative. We saw our world through different eyes.

I want that playful, silly, creative, imaginative, and funny side of you to live and breathe. Let him or her out. I believe in the power of laughter to heal our souls, lift us up over our challenges and pains, and unite us together.

And even when I was lying in the ICU on life support, I made the medical staff laugh. Laughter made all of us feel better. Imagine a world where we can laugh and play together, not at the expense of someone, but in harmony. I believe in childlike laughter and play.

Let’s be utterly silly. Believe me. It will help you to feel happy.

I believe in you

I believe you have great potential. I know you are creative, innovative, funny, and insightful. No matter who you are, where you live, or what you believe in, I believe in you.

Live and let live

I believe in the right for each of us to live how we choose, as long as we do not hurt another person.

It is not for me to say how you should live your life. Nor is it yours to pass judgment or laws on me. I believe in that right.

When we live by the creed of kindness, integrity, respect, and humility, we value others and work for the betterment of our world. Our personal, private lives are ours. We decide what we want to do and how we should do it. We should have the right to choose for ourselves. But what we choose and how we live must never harm another person.

You and I, as Professionals

All of the above beliefs apply to us professionals too, as they define who we are as individuals.

Forever Explorers

I believe we are explorers, forever seeking new ways to improve and innovate. You and I, we create new possibilities, that which is not here right now. We explore new methodologies and techniques to see what will improve our efficiency and effectiveness. We are forever exploring.

Forever Students

I believe we are forever students. Technology changes rapidly. We must be forever curious, pushing ourselves to learn and grow. We must smartly focus on building our proficiencies and productivity, while avoiding the barrage of buzz noise. We are forever students of life and technology.

Smartly Efficient

I believe we are responsible to work smartly and be efficient. We tweak our workflows to better serve our needs. We know not to adjust that which serves us well. We know that there are different approaches and stackups that we can use; however, we are smart and know to pick a path and stick with it.

We know that our apps, frameworks, and libraries are just tools to help us be more efficient. We are smart and select that which will help us to achieve that goal. We are productive.

Craftspeople

I believe we are responsible to work smartly and be efficient. We tweak our workflows to better serve our needs. We know not to adjust that which serves us well. We know that there are different approaches that we can use; however, we are smart and know to pick a path and stick with it.

I believe you and I want to do the very best job we can. We seek to build high quality, clean solutions that are reusable, readable, and maintainable. We know that those three attributes drive down costs and make it easier for our team and us to work together.

Our code is a direct reflect our proficiencies and professionalism. It tells a story. Anyone reading it should know the story it tells. Seek to build quality and seek learning how to improve your code.

It’s our job to make our solutions simply readable that anyone can jump into our project, quickly figure it out, and then get to work.

I believe in the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) principle. I believe you and I are simplifiers.

Collaborators

I believe you and I are collaborators. We work on teams and with a community. We know how to communicate with one another, respecting each other’s opinions, and taking the best solutions for the betterment of the project.

Get over yourself. Ego-free

I believe we are at the top of our game when we get over ourselves and live/work ego-free. Egos, and the constant need to feed the monster, gets in the way of everything. It inhibits creativity, team building, innovation, and collaboration. It divides.

I know this is a tough attribute, as we are human. But in the workplace, we must put our egos aside and work together for the betterment of the project and team. You and I need to think about the team, client, and project before ourselves. When we do, we will contribute to delighting our bosses and clients.

And remember, just because you didn’t build it doesn’t mean it isn’t a good solution. Be open and collaborative. There are many different ways to solve the same problem.

Contributors & Knowledge Sharers

You and I have unique experience, expertise, and knowledge. We are good citizens and contribute to the betterment of our communities and profession. We share our knowledge and help one another. We mentor others. We roll up our sleeves and contribute to open source projects. You and I are a part of the developer community.

Intuitive Interfaces Builders

If I have to read the manual to know how to use the product, the interface is wrong. Build intuitive interfaces that are self-supporting and self-serving. Empower the user to be successful on his/her own.

Reduce the steps. Build in help and knowledge. Guide them with valuable insights tailored just for them. Be smart. The interface directly impacts the success of your product.

Leadership

All of the above beliefs apply for leadership too, as we cannot separate the person from business.

Lead By Example

Our character and who we are at the core of us is how we lead. Our ability to live the human attributes listed above directly impacts our ability to lead, inspire, move, and motivate people.

I believe in an effective, visionary, and charismatic leader is one who embodies integrity, kindness, humility, and excellence. Our behaviors, words, and actions show those around us whether they should believe in our vision or not. People need to believe in us and trust that what we see is obtainable.

People-Centric Culture

I believe in a people-centric culture over a project-centric environment. Projects are things with a short lifespan. They are short term and can follow a set of guidelines. They are measureable and controllable. Why? Because they are just things.

People are not projects. They do not react or respond like projects. You cannot manage them like you do a project.

People are feeling and emotional beings that need to be fulfilled in order to motivate them. They need to feel connected, engaged, and valued. When they do, they will innovate more, be more loyal, and amaze you and your clients. Build happy teams.

Build the Best Teams

In order to be competitive in an ever changing market, you need the best individuals on your team, those who are aligned to your mission and vision. Period.

You need to find talent, which means you need a wide pool of prospects. Distributed, remote teams give you that pool. It opens up boundaries, as the density of your physical geographic location is small. Remote allows you to scan the world for the best talent that fits into your organization.

I believe in investing heavily into your teams and each individual. Grow them. Give back to them. Build happy teams and amaze your clients.

Obstacle Seekers

I believe a leader seeks obstacles, those inhibitors that impede productivity and growth. We measure, analyze, and rectify each obstacle to empower our processes and teams.

Any process that does not support and increase our team’s productivity must be retooled or even scraped. We seek the input from our teams and then lead the effort to ensure that all systems and processes directly support our mission and teams.

Share the Vision

I believe a leader must communicate and share his/her vision. Leaders dream. We are visionaries who see what could be, something that is not present now. We see the potential and possibilities. Gifted leaders know how to effectively transfer our vision to our teams in order for it to become a reality. Share the vision.

Then empower and unleash your teams to go build it and amaze your customers.

Think and Be Proactive

I believe leaders must be thinking many steps ahead in order to foresee the path and consider alternatives. We must be proactive and not reactive. Our jobs are to build a proactive culture and ensure the processes support it fully.

Boldly Innovate

We, as the technology professionals, invent, innovate, and improve. We drive technology. As leaders, it’s our jobs to think big and bold. We must then be smart enough to visualize a roadmap to bring it to reality and bold enough to make it happen. Share that vision. Let your teams breathe life into it.

Amaze Clients

I believe successful businesses continuously amaze clients. As a leader, it’s our job to push the boundaries and seek opportunities to delight our users and customers.

Know Your Users

You are building something for a population of users. These are the people who will interact with your product or service. Know your user. Know what they want and need. Know how they use the interfaces. Build for the user.

Get out there and interact with your users. Be a good citizen of the world and lead by your actions. Be supportive, kind, and overly helpful.