(Or dive-bombs, depending on which one of us you’re talking about.)
The WM team entered our 4th quarter of the year, so as usual, we had an excuse to celebrate.
We had our delicious Q4 dinner and quarterly recap meeting at Karl Strauss, followed by a fun/challenging/terrifying (again, depends on who you ask) team outing at the Flightdeck flight simulator in Anaheim.
Here are a few things we learned about flight simulators:
- Prior video game experience gives one a slight-to-tremendous advantage.
- Trash talking is a must.
- If you fly 20,000 feet higher than everyone else to avoid being shot down, the control tower will reset you amongst the mayhem.
- Kamikazes do not earn you an additional kill (of yourself); however, they do not deduct points either.
- Previous flight simulator experience does not guarantee results.
- When you communicate with the other pilots, you must hold down the proper button. Otherwise, everyone just sees your lips moving.
- If your plane blows up after a safe landing, it’s not really considered a safe landing.
- It’s the quiet ones you have to watch out for. (Exception: Tyree, who couldn’t figure out the button situation.)
A good time was had by all, and some unique call signs were revealed as well…
Back to our Q4 meeting:
Our Q3 book was Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott. We learned that to be radically candid requires that a boss (or person, really):
- care personally, and
- challenge directly.
There are a lot of details that support that, but the overarching theme of the book seemed to be just being a decent human being who is genuinely interested in others’ feelings, goals, and overall well-being.
Shout out to Kyle for presenting the recap of each chapter in a creative and engaging way.
Our Q4 Book
This quarter, we’ll be tackling the super meaty but CRAZY good book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey.
I’m especially excited about this one because our company Core Values are based in part on the 7 Habits. (Our Core Values are Teamwork, Ownership, Balance, and Win-Win. Teamwork is about Win-Win, Seeking First to Understand, and Synergy. Ownership is about being Proactive and Beginning with the End in Mind. Balance is Beginning with the End in Mind and Putting First Things First. And Win-Win… is obvious, right?)
I’m confident this book will help us better understand and internalize our Core Values and help us grow as individuals, professionals, and a team.
New Team Member
In our third quarter, we also welcomed a new member to the team: Joe, Client Support Specialist and Front-End Developer.
It was a great Q3, and we’re looking forward to an epic Q4!
