RESPECT THE MAGIC//
Ideas, designs, and solutions are like rocks in a tumbler. Throw a bunch of rough and visually unpleasing rocks into a tumbler and turn on that tumbler for days. For hours on end, the rocks are bumping and skipping past each other, often grinding off layers of their exterior shells. After the days of tumbling, and the process is complete, the tumbler reveals beautiful shiny rocks that are far more shiny and valuable than when they first went into the tumbler.
This example is the cornerstone of our design process. We pitch ideas, concepts, and solutions to let it go and toss it into the tumbler. The tumbler process is where the magic happens and where the rocks (team member’s ideas) slowly begin to rub up against each other to reveal the value once hidden inside. We kick off every project with a pitch message. This kick off “Pitch” message is the tumbler. Every design project begins this way at Visual Edge because we are relentless in our pursuit of creating great ideas as a team.
NO ASSHOLES//
We are fortunate enough to work in a very creative industry. However, this can come at the expense of the ego. We have a zero-tolerance policy on working with assholes internally in the company. If you have a great idea, then prove it. But if the team rejects it for adequate reasons, let it go. You are not your ideas. Therefore, constantly commit to the practice of releasing your ideas for others to give feedback on and realize that is not a judgment of you but a judgement of an idea presented by you.
Another note, we represent the team that is Visual Edge. Our team members want to work here to advance the team that is Visual Edge. We are so serious about this that if an employee chooses to act out of ego and marches toward being an asshole. Then you will be quickly discovered and then fired. It’s the quickest way to get the boot.
WE DO NOT SPEND THE TIME OR ENERGY ON JUDGING OTHER’S WORK//
This is something that we are opting out of consistently. We firmly believe in the fundamental idea of it is so much harder to judge something than to dream, design, and execute. So we just don’t judge other peoples work unless we are specifically assigned to. We can think something is cool or inspiring but we don’t tolerate negative comments or feedback on other company or individuals work, its just too easy to do and takes no skill.
MANAGERS OF ONE//
We are responsible for ourselves, and in fact, we take extreme ownership of ourselves. That means we are responsible for making our own work schedule and setting boundaries around personal time to ensure that it is only interrupted on the rarest of occasions and is not the norm.
8/8/8//
After the “Managers Of One” and boundaries conversation, it’s important to note that we believe in time balance. There are only 24 hours in a day, right? We follow the rule of splitting that 24 hours in a day up into a simple 8, 8, and 8 formula. That split in further detail is 8 hours of work time, 8 hours of personal time, and 8 hours of sleep. That balanced three way split of time is crucial to not only your work life, but your personal life too. We are personally held responsible for this three-way balance. Do what you need to do to protect this balance. As for sleep, sleep is wildly important to your decision-making and your mental health and clarity. Check out this Huberman Lab podcast that explains all about this notion. In practice, the grind all-day everyday mentality will eventually break you in either the personal or work areas of your life. At Visual Edge, we have an equal opportunity to do well across many areas in our lives, so we plan to spend the time equally and then commit to it.
WE ALL FAIL FAST//
When we inevitably fail, we fail fast, meaning we admit to the failure, learn from the failure, and improve from the failure. We practice it in that sequence, too.
ERR ON THE SIDE OF DO//
The tendency to put off, push away, or otherwise delay is strong. No. Act and move on. And act again if you have to — most decisions are temporary, anyway.
NOT ASAP//
The expectation of immediate response is everywhere. Real-time everything isn’t human-scale, yet that’s how so many work and communicate these days. Not us. We think urgency is overrated, and ASAP is poison. Real-time is the wrong time most of the time.
REAL TIME SOMETIMES - ASYNCHRONOUS MOST OF THE TIME//
Work remotely, not locally apart. Don’t just have the same meetings on GoogleMeet, have fewer meetings. Rather than discussing everything in real-time, communicate asynchronously instead. Rather than feel the need to know where everyone is, let go and trust more. Don’t try to emulate the office and everything it stands for — stand against it. Radiate all the information you have because we grow from more information. The more information that is radiated the more trust is built.
ALL HOURS ARE NOT MADE EQUAL//
An hour isn’t an hour. It’s a collection of minutes that add up to an hour. And 60 uninterrupted minutes is a higher-quality hour than an hour chopped into four 15-minute sessions. Uninterrupted hours lead to quality time, quality work. Days chunked into tiny blocks of time are a terrible way to work.
DISAGREE AND COMMIT//