Collaboration Value Questions

george-cristian · November 13, 2022, 4:06pm

We need to collaborate because one person only has 24 hours available. Multiple people have hundreds or even thousands of hours available. So if you want to achieve great things, you need to collaborate with other people.
You are expected to collaborate in case you need help and advice.
At Moralis, we give positive feedback by endorsing each other in a public way, via channels on slack.
At Moralis, negative feedback is given in the smallest setting as possible. And I would say this is applicable for any company. Negative feedback is actually constructive feedback.
Negative feedback is when you want the person to directly improve a specific aspect of his way of working. Disagreement is when two people have contradicting ideas which requires extra discussion to settle it. The disagreement can be done in a public channel.
Negative feedback has the goal of improving the other person, and it offers an actionable way to improve, while negativity does not have the goal of improving and it is not actionable.
Disagreements should be discussed in a public channel.
Negative/constructive feedback should be discussed in a 1-on-1 call.
If I am higher in the management chain, then people can give me negative feedback in a group setting.
Providing feedback as fast as possible, solves the problems while they are small and fresh in memory. If you linger and wait to provide feedback, then the situation is not that relevant any more, and you can become resentful if you keep it within yourself.
The #thanks channel can be used to give praise to someone.
When praising someone you should think about doing it sincerely and also say the reason why you are thankful.
Some important ingredients to take note when giving feedback to someone: provide the observation, meaning provide a clear and objective example of when the situation happened. Then state to the person how that situation made me feel. And then focus on improving the team member by providing a way forward.
Of course it is ok to give feedback to managers. They are also people, and they are not gods. They also have points to improve, and they cannot improve them without being aware of them.
Heh, of course not. Driving off a cliff sounds like sudden death, and sudden death is not cool man. So give feedback.
It is important to get to know each other informally, because then the collaboration is way more efficient, knowing how the other person can react to different situations. It will make also easier to prevent conflicts.
A weekly session is organized on thursdays in which you can get to know the team more informally.
Not pulling rank meaning not using someone else’s name to get a point across. If you do that, then that means you don’t truly believe it yourself.
Assuming positive intent means to assume that the other person comes from a place of positivity and good faith, rather than negativity, and then try to respect their position while you are getting your point across. This should be done when a disagreement occurs.
A straw man is when you are disagreeing against the weakest points of the argument, or an imaginary argument. Whereas a steel man is when you are arguing against the most strongest points of the discussion raised by the other.
The steel man should be used in every argument or disagreement.
Saying sorry should be done as fast as possible and it is a sign of strength, not a weakness. Saying sorry is also a form of leadership, because others can pick up to this kind of behaviour and it reinforces the values.
No ego means that you should not force to win an argument just because you want to be on top, or not show weakness. The idea is to find the right answer and to help others, even though you might not be right.
The goal is to improve and provide quality, not to bash other people because they maybe did a mistake. By blameless problem solving, you focus on solving the issue and improving the processes instead of focusing on criticizing the other person.
Short toes means that everyone should be able to take the initiative and to try to improve things, independently of the experience he has in the company, or the rank.
Collaboration is when multiple people can contribute to achieve a certain goal. Consensus is when multiple people have to give their input in order to achieve that goal.
No, you do not have to ask for people’s opinions always.
Permissionless innovation is when you do not need to ask for permission from people, but people can contribute to achieve a certain goal.
Politics at Moralis is showcased when, for example, a decision needs to be made. Politics should not be involved, and the focus should be put on finding the right decision for the given situation, objectively. Another example of when politics should not be involved, is when a promotion is given: this should be given based on merits, and not based on somebody liking them.

Uff, this was a doozy

jossif · November 14, 2022, 1:25pm

Because together we have more than 24 hours per day
You are expected to collaborate and help others, and expect the same from the colleagues around.
In a public way!
Ideally in a 1-on-1 call.
If no feedback is included then its a discussion and should be held in public - respectfully and transparently.
Negative feedback i aimed to help and is actionable, when negativity has no goal of helping someone improve.
Publicly in a slack channel or similar.
1 on 1.
To someone higher in the management chain.
Because we want to solve problems while they are small.
In the #thanks channel.
By doing it sincerely and summarize why you are thankful so the person on the receiving end can easily understand why they are being thanked.
Focus on the business impact. Don’t focus on the person. Include at least one recent example.
YES!
No.
Because it is easier to prevent conflicts once you know the person behind the text.
We have weekly FIKA
It means to not use you rank or someone else’s in order to get your way. Instead prove that the work or the idea is correct.
It means that in our interactions with others we don’t assume they mean harm.
Straw man is when you’re disagreeing with someone and argument against their weakest points, instead of arguing against their strongest (steel).
When you disagree with someone, but its important to have in mind that the points are presented in good faith.
That at Moralis we appreciate the people that are able to understand their mistakes and take responsibility for them. To say you’re sorry as early as possible makes other learn from those mistakes.
It means that we don’t defend a point just to win an argument. Our goal is to find the correct answer.
nvestigate mistakes in a way that focuses on the situational aspects of a failure’s mechanism and the decision-making process that led to the failure, rather than cast blame on a person or team.
People joining the company frequently say, “I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes.”
At Moralis, we should be more accepting of people taking initiative in trying to improve things.
When we are collaborating we keep everything transparent. With consensus we mean that people shouldn’t ask you “why didn’t you ask for my input?” or that we ask the and have to wait. We believe in permissionless innovation
No.
It means that we don’t need to involve people, but everyone can contribute.
We don’t want people to play politics. Proposals should be weighed on their merits and not on who proposed them.

Alexlane8 · January 15, 2023, 5:30pm

Introduction

Why do we need to collaborate?
We only have 24hours to work so one person can only make tiny achievement but when we collaborate with others we can achieve a lot more in the same 24hours that then turns into thousands of hours.
What are you expected to do if you need help and advise?
I am expected to ask for help and collaborate with others. This provides opportunity for me to learn from others and become more knowledgeable and therefore be able to help someone else.

Feedback

How do we give positive feedback?
Give as much positive feedback as you can in as public way. You can use the #thanks channel on Slack or make a very public endorsement of someone’s work in your channel you use for that particular project.
How do we give negative feedback?
Needs to be given in the smallest setting possible. Ideally in a 1-on-1 call. It needs to be aimed to help coming from a place where you genuinely trying to help the recipient improve the situation. It needs to be actionable ideally giving suggestions on exactly what they need to do.
What’s the difference between negative feedback and disagreement?
Negative feedback is aimed to help the person and is actionable ideally coming with suggestions on how to improve the project. Disagreement doesn’t come with suggestions and may not come from a place of wanting to help the other person improve or learn.
What’s the difference between negative feedback and negativity?
Negativity is not aimed to improve the person and is not actionable while negative feedback is.
Where should disagreements be discussed?
On a public channel with transparency and respectfulness.
Where should negative feedback be discussed?
In the smallest setting possible. preferably in a 1-on-1 call.
Who can you give negative feedback to in a group setting?
To someone higher in the management chain. This shows no one is above feedback.
Why is it important to provide feedback as fast as possible?
To solve problems while they are small.
What channel in slack can you use to praise someone?
#thanks chat channel
What should you think about when praising someone?
Being thanked at the company level for what you view as a small or minuscule contribution can feel awkward. Thanking a person should be done sincerely and summarize why you are thankful so the person on the receiving end can easily understand why they are being thanked. Help the person understand how they went above and beyond and why you felt is was important for the team member to be recognized.
How can you give feedback effectively? Write some important ingredients.
-Make it about the work itself; focus on the business impact and not on the person.
-Provide at least one clear and recent example.
if negative feedback must be given, focus on the purpose of that feedback to improve the team member’s performance going forward.
Is it ok to give feedback to the manager?
We are expected to, and it is our job to give feedback to managers.
Is it ok to let the manager drive us off a cliff?
No it is not ok. that is why it is important to give feedback to managers. Managers are just people and don’t know better in all cases. Therefore it is important to always help your team speak up if you see that Moralis is heading in a wrong direction.

Working Together

Why is it important to get to know each other informally?
Moralis is an all-remote company that uses a lot of text-based communication. if you know the person behind the text it will be easier to prevent conflicts.
What do we do at Moralis to make the informal meetings possible?
Through the weekly FIKA session on Thursdays
What do we mean by “don’t pull rank”?
Don’t use your or someone else’s position in the company to sell an idea or decision.
What do we mean when we “Assume Positive Intent”? In what situations do we do that?
Assume the points are presented in good faith . Respect someone’s expertise and giving them grace in the face of what you might perceive as mistakes. When arguing, argue against the strongest version of your opponent’s position.
What is a straw man and what is a steel man?
A straw man is when when disagreeing someone argues against the weakest points of an argument, or an imaginary argument.
A steel man argument is when someone argues against the strongest version of your opponents position. It is against the most effective version of your opponents position. The other person feels that you have represented their position well even if they still disagree with your assumptions or conclusions.
When should you use the steel man?
In a disagreement.
What can you say about “saying sorry” at Moralis?
Apologize as soon as possible… Saying sorry is not a sign of weakness but one of strength. When we share our mistakes and bring attention to them, others can learn from us, and the same mistake is less likely to be repeated by someone else. Mistakes can include when you have not been kind to someone. It is important to apologize publicly when you have been unkind publicly.
What do we mean by “no ego”?
Don’t defend your point to win an argument or double down on a mistake. You have to search for the right answer with help from others.
What do we mean by “blameless problem solving”?
Investigate mistakes in a way that focuses on the situational aspects of a failure’s mechanism and the decision-making process that led to the failure, rather than case blame on a person or team. Moralis holds blameless root cause analysis and retrospectives for stakeholders to speak up without fear o punishment or retribution.
What do we mean by “short toes”?
We can let go of the view of not wanting to step on anyone’s toes and instead be more accepting of people taking initiative in trying to improve things. As companies grow, their speed in decision-making goes down since there are more people involved. We should counteract that by having short toes and feeling comfortable letting others contribute to our domain.
Collaboration
What is the difference between collaboration and consensus?
Consensus involves everyone’s inputs and opinions before a decision can be made. Collaboration means working together in teams but not needing everyone’s opinions or participation in order to achieve a goal. You don’t have to wait for people to provide input
Are you expected to ask peoples opinions always?
No we don’t need to ask other’s opinions in every situation, however everyone can contribute.
What is permissionless innovation?
You don’t need to involve people, but everyone can contribute. This is core to how we iterate, since we want smaller teams moving quickly rather than large teams achieving consensus slowly.
What can you say about politics at Moralis?
Playing politics is not allowed at Moralis. Proposals should be weighed on their merits and not on who proposed them. People should be promoted based on their results instead of based on others liking them or having a lot of alliances.

Malena · May 30, 2023, 10:40pm

Introduction

Why do we need to collaborate? - To achieve great results we can work better and more efficiently if we combine efforts, skills, and hours of work.
What are you expected to do if you need help and advise? - To reach out and ask for help inside the team and even across departments if needed.

Feedback

How do we give positive feedback? Publicly
How do we give negative feedback? As privately as possible. Ideally 1-1
What’s the difference between negative feedback and disagreement? Negative feedback is directed to someone specific, with constructive motives. A disagreement should be discussed in a private channel, respectfully and transparently.
What’s the difference between negative feedback and negativity? Negative feedback has good intentions, means well and proposes solutions. Needs to be actionable. Negativity is never accepted since it bad intentioned.
Where should disagreements be discussed? Disagreements should be discussed respectfully in a private channel.
Where should negative feedback be discussed? As privately as possible.
Who can you give negative feedback to in a group setting? Managers
Why is it important to provide feedback as fast as possible? To find a solution while they are still small problems.
What channel in slack can you use to praise someone? #thanks
What should you think about when praising someone? Some people might feel uncomfortable with public praising. should be done for something meaningful and consider there are other places to say thanks.
How can you give feedback effectively? Write some important ingredients. Should be sincere, should explain why, and do it for something meaningful.
Is it ok to give feedback to the manager? More than ok, it is expected.
Is it ok to let the manager drive us off a cliff? Never.

Working Together

Why is it important to get to know each other informally? A lot of the communication while working remotely is done over text. Knowing someone informally will make communication easier and avoid misunderstandings.
What do we do at Moralis to make the informal meetings possible? Weekly FIKA Sessions on Thursdays.
What do we mean by “don’t pull rank”? If you are using your rank to impose a decision, something must be wrong.
What do we mean when we “Assume Positive Intent”? In what situations do we do that? We usually blame circumstances on our mistakes and people on theirs. We should assume positive intent, recognise their expertise and give grace in what we think are mistakes.
What is a straw man and what is a steel man? Straw- arguing against the weakest points of the arguments, while steel is arguing against the stronger ones.
When should you use the steel man? When there is a disagreement.
What can you say about “saying sorry” at Moralis? Its a sign of strength.
What do we mean by “no ego”? Don’t argue for the sake of wining. Search for the right answer with the help of others.
What do we mean by “blameless problem solving”? Search for the cause of the error and not who made it. Blame the decision making that took you to it and not the team that made it.
What do we mean by “short toes”? we should let others contribute to our work and accept innovation.

Collaboration

What is the difference between collaboration and consensus? We can collaborate in the team, ask and give help, but we don’t need others input to work and innovate.
Are you expected to ask peoples opinions always? No.
What is permissionless innovation? Everyone can contribute but you don’t need their input all the time.
What can you say about politics at Moralis? It is not accepted.

MichaelGolpe · June 19, 2023, 6:43pm

Why do we need to collaborate?
Collaboration is pertinent to success for the individual, teams, and Moralis. The main way this is achieved is time management- with the complexity of “cryptoworld” we cannot do it alone, there aren’t enough hours in the day.
What are you expected to do if you need help and advise?
Simply put, just ask. We’re all in this together.
How do we give positive feedback?
We do it publicly at a company level. Since Moralis is remote, Slack is utilized. Most importantly we are doing it in a motivating way.
How do we give negative feedback?
In the smallest setting possible, ideally a 1-on-1 call, we avoid negativity and offer feedback appreciating the other’s perspective. The allows ourselves to evaluate our own perspectives as well as others, allowing us to grow as well. If we are not in direct feedback, we are to use the public channels. What I like about this is that it avoids gossip and poor time management.
What’s the difference between negative feedback and disagreement?
Disagreement is just reflective of different approaches to the same outcome. Negative Feedback is more precise and identifies a particular matter that needs improvement.
What’s the difference between negative feedback and negativity?
Negative Feedback is just a feedback that isn’t positive to, or about, something- seeking improvement of something. Negativity is not seeking to improve anything- it’s just negative for negative’s sake- as such there is nothing actionable or productive to it.
Where should disagreements be discussed?
With respect and transparency, it should be discussed in a public channel.
Where should negative feedback be discussed?
The smallest setting possible, preferably in a 1-to-1 call.
Who can you give negative feedback to in a group setting?
Anyone
Why is it important to provide feedback as fast as possible?
Time and resources are precious to achieving goals in an efficient manner.
What channel in slack can you use to praise someone?
The Thanks Chat Channel
What should you think about when praising someone?
Explain why the praise is warranted- it may seem frivolous without it.
How can you give feedback effectively? Write some important ingredients.
Most importantly, be kind. Have empathy and understanding. Seek to make actionable improvements. Never be negative or political.
Is it ok to give feedback to the manager?
Yes.
Is it ok to let the manager drive us off a cliff?
No
Why is it important to get to know each other informally?
Since Moralis is remote, and this applies to any remote organization, “If you know the person behind the text - it will be easier to prevent conflicts.”
What do we do at Moralis to make the informal meetings possible?
Thursday FIKA Sessions
What do we mean by “don’t pull rank”?
If a decision has to be forced by rank in a business setting, then it is likely a poor decision. An open discussion must be formed to discuss further inputs and disagreements.
What do we mean when we “Assume Positive Intent”? In what situations do we do that?
When we are anxious, embarrassed, nervous, we have to remind ourselves that the person causing it has our best interest at heart.
What is a straw man and what is a steel man?
Straw Man is usually a tactical maneuver to create an argument about something rather than the topic at hand, a form of deflection. In this case, however, it is described as attacking the weakest point of an argument. Steel Man is a highly productive discussion strategy involving critical analysis of a position’s strongest attributes.
When should you use the steel man?
Steel Man, when performed properly and with courtesy and respect, is a great tool for analyzing a larger strategy. When performing a more tactical task, it may be used to determine how the smaller task works into the larger strategy.
What can you say about “saying sorry” at Moralis?
I like the “Say Sorry” approach at Moralis. It shows the strength of humility.
What do we mean by “no ego”?
Put on your big boy/big girl pants and admit when you make a mistake.
What do we mean by “blameless problem solving”?
If there’s a problem, fix it. Fix it immediately. Looking for blame is a Fool’s Endeavor. If there is a repetitive problem, address it professionally.
What do we mean by “short toes”?
Don’t let ego get in the way and let the new person make Moralis better.
What is the difference between collaboration and consensus?
Collaboration is people working together. Consensus is when everyone agrees. Consensus is an efficiency killer that’s symptomatic of large corporations. Collaboration gets the job done.
Are you expected to ask peoples opinions always?
No
What is permissionless innovation?
I love this quote, “you don’t need to involve people, but everyone can contribute.” It’s about getting the job done.
What can you say about politics at Moralis?
What politics at Moralis? Moralis doesn’t do favoritism or any other ridiculousness.