Where have you failed in your professional work? How did you respond to that failure? It is a common interview question. One many people dread. Consider failure as one of the best teaching tools you can find, and look to grow from your failure.

Shifting your mindset as a technical leader is one of the most important changes for you to consider as your role changes. Contrast how different the role of technical leader is from an individual contributor. How can you make this shift and avoid a big mistake?

Have you ever felt that one of your staff isn’t working with urgency? Maybe your entire team? Have you experienced a team that appears not to care if something is done today or tomorrow? You wish they showed more energy or motivation to deliver results?

Simple questions help with prioritization when everything seems important. Rarely will someone come to you with a request that they will admit is not important. You end up having to make your best judgement where to spend your time. These questions bring the real priority into focus.

Communicating clear expectations with your team is a fundamental skill for any leader. How are you communicating to your team when you want them to do something? How specific are you? What language can you use to reduce the ambiguity of your expecations?

Pay attention to the words you use and what it conveys about your attitude. When you are frustrated, it can be easy to communicate a bad attitude that seems directed at others. What words can you use to avoid the appearance of a bad attitude?

We do ourselves a disservice by including every little detail in something we write, in particular a recommendation or assessment. The impact of a powerful one-page is true from a resume to a marketing brochure. The power of one-page can strip away meaningless details and get to the heart of your message.

There are times when we need to swing for the fences. Push ourselves to do more than we think possible. As technical leaders, these are times when we need to try to do something without knowing for sure if we can. Know the implications of asking for the impossible and assess the risk of failure.

The word “entitled” has popped up recently in a number of situations. It is never a good description to be called entitled. I listened to a podcast where the founder of Atari talked about how being entitled is basically the worst thing you can be. Do you come across as entitled? How can you avoid it?

One of our jobs in leadership is to manage and communicate the continual change in every organization. Take a moment to think about how you communicate changes. Following a few simple steps can dramatically improve how your staff responds and reduces the stress on your organization.

As a technical leader, you’re always looking for new tactics that improve your team performance. Not every tactic works in all situations. This one practice works on nearly every team in every organization. You can improve the long-term performance of your team.

As the holidays approach, I love the increase focus on gratitude. Being grateful is a state of mind. There is research that shows giving thanks can make you happier. What can you do to act on this attitude of gratitude? Try this one daily habit and see how it changes you and those around you.

I’ve always been a proponent of healthy disagreement. I enjoy arguing both sides of any topic, and I believe disagreement can result in better choices. I can be guilty of seeing only “my way” and not exploring all the options fully enough, and healthy disagreement can help pierce through this one-sided thinking. There is one situation, however, when healthy disagreement is toxic.

One key attribute of effective technical leaders is a recognition of the extreme value of time. Technical leaders are pulled in many different directions. Your time is limited. Responsibilities get added and your time becomes taxed. Set your priorities, act accordingly and demonstrate you value your time as an executive.

I’ve written some more philosophical posts over the last few weeks. I decided to return to some basic best practices that can make you a more effective technical leader in your role today. One common problem in almost every organization is ineffective meetings. Here’s a simple tactic that can make any meeting more effective.

I mentioned last week that I found myself in the middle of the fires that have destroyed so many homes in Northern California. The experience has had an impact on me. Not only looking at priorities. Also thinking about impermanence. What can we make of our efforts when we know nothing lasts forever?

I woke up Monday morning in Northern California with a call from my sister saying wildfires were threatening. Her neighbor knocked on her door and said “Be prepared to evacuate.” Neither of us realized that fires were so close, and overnight the fire grew five times in size from the high winds. In a moment of crisis where people are evacuating and losing their homes, I think about prioritization.

What is the most common mistake made by new technical managers? I recently read an article saying the #1 mistake was not focusing on relationships. Relationships are important. The first mistake I often see is more fundamental.

The language in a memo from new Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has been hailed as setting the tone for his leadership. In particular, this memo has been used to highlight being vulnerable as a part of leading. How can you use vulnerability and risk-taking to grow as a leader?