Why People Are INVISIBLE To Leaders And How To Fix It | Ethan Evans

Identifying High Potential Employees [01:12]

• High-potential individuals stand out by offering interesting and surprising ideas, demonstrating depth of thought and cleverness.
• Enthusiasm and a collaborative attitude are crucial; people who present ideas with a "here's the answer, can't you see it?" attitude are off-putting compared to those who seek collaboration.
• Leaders often resonate with individuals who are curious, look beyond their immediate tasks, and are driven by a passion to delve deep or create something new.
• Spending extra time on work, driven by curiosity and passion rather than obligation, is a significant signal of high potential.
• "Unreasonable" individuals, those dissatisfied with the status quo and driven to make things better, are key drivers of progress and breakthrough performance.

"The definition of unreasonable can vary, but you've gota when you look at the world say this can be better and I'm gonna make it that way."

The Value of Bringing Value in Skip-Level Meetings [03:02]

• To stand out, individuals should be prepared to teach their leaders something new during skip-level or multi-skip meetings.
• The burden is on the individual to bring value, not just to fill time or express ambition without substance.
• Those who consistently bring interesting and valuable insights are more likely to have their careers accelerated.

"Okay, we'll do this, but you have to come prepared to tell me something I don't know. Like there's a burden on you to bring value."

Navigating Career and Passion [07:00]

• "Random beats nothing"; inaction and analysis paralysis are worse than taking a chance and learning from it.
• The speaker advocates for finding something that comes naturally and easily, then intensely focusing on becoming the best at it, as this approach can be more fulfilling than forcing oneself to master something disliked.
• Discovering a passion, like managing people and projects, can lead to a drive to do more, learn skills, and achieve greater success.

"Running down a track I already love is effortless. And so for this person I would say figure out what excites you."

The Role of Long Hours and Flow State in Productivity [10:11]

• Long hours make a significant difference due to simple mathematics; working more hours inherently leads to more output unless the other person is 50% more efficient.
• In a high-performance environment, peers are also highly capable, making extraordinary efficiency a high bar to clear.
• A "hack" for long hours is achieving flow state, or "the zone," which non-linearly increases productivity by shutting out stimuli and losing track of time.
• The true magic of flow state isn't just getting more done in less time, but no longer feeling the passage of hours, leading to work that provides pleasure and fulfillment.

"It's that you're no longer feeling the hours. So to make this really concrete, you know, I retired from Amazon and I've been transparent in my writing that I made enough money at Amazon that I don't need to work. I choose to work."

Managing Risk and Handling Failure in Leadership [12:56]

• Taking risks is essential; playing it safe will lead to being outpaced by those who do take risks, some of whom will succeed.
• Handling failure well can build trust. When "the chips are down," how one manages adversity draws leadership's attention and can foster greater trust.
• The psychological fear of failure is often a greater impediment than the actual downside, as the modern business world rarely presents true existential threats like cliffs or tigers.
• The ability to "rise to the occasion" after a mistake, by presenting a new plan and taking ownership, builds credibility, unlike "turtling up," apologizing, or becoming low-confidence.

"If you don't take any risk, you will be eclipsed by people who do."

Navigating Catastrophic Failures with Jeff Bezos [18:43]

• Two catastrophic failures in front of Jeff Bezos occurred, both resulting in him knowing the speaker had screwed up.
• In one instance, a feature launch for the Amazon App Store failed on the morning of a planned customer announcement. Instead of hiding, the speaker communicated a clear plan of action, buying credibility hour by hour.
• Facing the CEO after a failure is critical; showing up, standing up, and engaging him, even when he was angry, demonstrated resilience and a willingness to handle adversity.
• Bezos chose a "human path" to build relationship, asking "Sir, how are you doing? It must have been a long week," which, despite prior anger, indicated the situation would be okay and ultimately led to the speaker's promotion.

"He chose the human path to build relationship and so I knew it was going to be okay and I stayed at the company."

Identifying Red Flags in "Snake Pits" [26:24]

• Ignoring warning signs is common when job security feels paramount; personal need can override judgment.
• A manager being unethical, eccentric, or dishonest might not immediately trigger the thought of personal retaliation, especially if one compartmentalizes work and home life.
• Key warning signs include a leader who "tells stories," which may sound like fantasy or dishonesty to others, even if the leader believes them.
• To escape "snakes," having an escape plan, including a good network and savings, is crucial for a stronger negotiating position.

"If you want to get away from snakes, you have to have an escape plan available."

The Trade-Off Between Ambition and Personal Life [30:30]

• While many executives have happy marriages, the demanding nature of high-level careers, including long hours, can lead to sacrifices in relationships, with some individuals experiencing multiple divorces.
• The pursuit of ambition, money, and hard work can be seductive, but it's possible to avoid wrecking one's life by making intentional choices.
• Prioritizing family often means taking a step back in career progression; achieving extreme success while also being fully present for family is rare and requires exceptional optimization.
• There is a trade-off between peak performance at a demanding company and being present for personal milestones like family events.

"But you can only do so many things at once. Most of the people I see who truly prioritize family, who really prioritize being there at everything for their kids and being at home, take a step back in their career to do that."

The Value of Technical Fluency in Management [38:01]

• While many engineers prefer managers who have coded before (empathy, understanding), this isn't the only metric for effective leadership.
• Managers also need strong interpersonal skills, career development abilities, and executive influencing capabilities, which may be traded off by those solely focused on technical backgrounds.
• The ideal manager is technically fluent and has coding experience, but also excels in leadership and personnel management.
• The speaker's own career path prioritized leadership and team building over deep technical coding, leading to success in managing large teams, though he acknowledges a different path might have been beneficial.

"The question is because we said there's no free lunch. What have they traded off to get that? Are they as good interpersonally?"

Disagreement with Elon Musk on VP Coding [42:23]

• The speaker disagreed with Elon Musk's expectation that VPs at SpaceX code 10% of the time, stating it seemed like a "terrible idea" for a rocket carrying people.
• This direct disagreement with Musk, despite Musk's prominent position, highlights a willingness to challenge authority based on conviction.
• The conversation revealed a misunderstanding with recruiters, who initially indicated a preference for non-coding VPs, contradicting Musk's requirement, leading to a curt interview conclusion.

"It seems insane to me to have a VP dabble in code on a rocket that's going to carry people. That seems like a terrible idea."

Scaling Impact and the Power of Networks [45:44]

• The speaker, who receives numerous personal thank you notes daily for career advice, realizes his current impact is limited.
• To scale this impact, he has created a chatbot version of himself (Ethan GPT) to make his advice accessible globally, 24/7.
• Undervalued is the power of building personal networks and relationships, as "it's not what you know, it's who you know," and connections can open doors that pure knowledge might not.

"Undervalued is building the relationships that will open doors."