Benevolent Friction
The Haitian side of the family was very vocal, and dinner conversations were important. I remember being a child and looking at my aunts and uncles and asking them why they were always arguing.
What I realized was that they were very engaged in discussions about the economy or about what was going on in different countries. I was witnessing the best part of “benevolent friction” — to be hard on ideas but soft on people — because there was a lot of love and hope about the future. …
Tell me more about “benevolent friction.”
In a start-up, you don’t know what tomorrow will bring, so you have to be constantly learning and be adaptive with your colleagues. You might think you have a role to play, but you have to listen and be responsive to your colleagues in order for the team to really win.
In the beginning, some people didn’t like it when I used that phrase because they felt that friction is a negative thing, and they didn’t want to have any friction with their colleagues.
I would explain that if you don’t have pressure on the carbon, you never get to the diamond. You can still be very respectful, and assume everybody has a spark, but we have to subject our ideas to the toughest scrutiny because our work is important.
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How do you hire?
I look for that spark. I invite them to tell me their story and how our company fits into that story. You learn a lot when people tell you their story: what they care about, their integrity, their passions and the choices and sacrifices that they make. When you overlay the technical capabilities on top of that, you have a pretty good sense of someone.
I also look for what I call “nimble intelligence” — people who can take in information, harness collective wisdom and make good judgments. They can adapt and pivot, and they’re always in motion.