*Note: I learned all of this from [Sue Odio](https://sueodio.com), our COO at Stellate.* 1:1s are a space that’s meant for us to connect as humans, as professionals as work. I don’t think we’re meant to be friends as colleagues, but we are meant to be close. I ask the same standard questions that flow from you to the company every time, which are really just there to prompt our minds and surface potentially interesting discussion topics. We don’t have to go through all of them every time, nor do we have to spend a lot of time on each question. This is meant to be conversational, so please ask questions back or feel free to come prepared with topics! That’s the only way we can connect, if it feels like an interview or (even worse) like an interrogation, that’s not connecting. What we do and what we don’t do is fuzzy, but there are a two things that I will never bring up in a 1:1 to ensure it stays a safe place for us to connect: - Project or status check-ins - Performance conversations (e.g., performance improvement plan or promotion) Of course, if you have something that’s on your mind regard a project, your performance, your career, or similar comes up, I’m happy to talk about it. This Notion space is for us, no one else is in here but I want us to take notes and capture our sentiments so that we can refer back and see trends over time. 1:1s are sacred, I will do everything in my power to keep the timeslot and we will always be together for the whole meeting — whether we speak or in silence. --- My 1:1 template: [[1-on-1 (template)]] Further reading: [Andreas Klinger writing about his philosophy](https://klinger.io/posts/1on1s), which matches mine closely.