Build great connections

#26 - 03.14.21

Brother -

I gave my final All-Hands speech to my team this past week. Yes, I am leaving Uber to start a new adventure, but more on that in later notes. I want to talk to you about people, which was the key message I tried to convey to my team.

"Great companies are built by great people who do great things."

My previous company's CEO would finish every All-Hands with this message, and it stuck with me as I now say it to my team as a nod to him. The bigger point, though, that I wanted to get across to my team is that "People are everything."

I made a call for them to recognize the connections that they are building with their colleagues. These bonds will last far beyond the company. Fate will bring many of them to work together again, in some capacity or another. Sometimes these connections go beyond work. They become deep friendships or even romantic. As you know, I met Katia at work.

When I look back on my somewhat short career, every single role I've done, I've had some connection either to the company or manager beforehand. It reinforces the adage of, "It's not what you know. It's who you know."

As I made my calls this past week to those about my news, it was clear that the list consisted of many former colleagues that are now friends. People will say that your alumni network is the best thing your company can give you.

The world is smaller than you think and more connected than you'd ever know. Each week I have some friend (e.g., previous colleague) reaching out about a reference, something to help on, or many times, a new exciting opportunity.

So my message is this. Build great connections. You're lucky to work in a company with a large group of young and ambitious people who will go on to do great things. Find the ones with high integrity, and they may become good friends as well.

Let me leave you with a quote and a question.

"People won't remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel."

-Maya Angelou 

Who are you building connections with?

Enjoy the dance,

Nate