Flashtags

I just listened to this great podcast episode with Dharmesh Shah, the co-founder of Hubspot. In the episode he mentions
“flashtags”, which are shorthand for someone to communicate how deeply they feel about a particular decision. I think this is especially important for leaders whos opinions always come across as mandates, when in reality, many are just that, opinions. He outlines the four that he uses here.

#fyi — Had this thought/idea/article/video/whatever pass through my brain.  I haven’t spent a lot of time thinking about it. You can read it or not. Act on it or not. No response needed or expected.

Hill Dying Status (am I willing to die on this hill): I don’t even see a hill.

#suggestion — Here’s something I would do if I were you. But, I’m not you — and you own this, so your call.  Just consider it and weigh it against other things you’re considering. I won’t be offended if you go another way. A quick reaction/response would be appreciated (so I can learn what kinds of suggestions are useful/valuable), but is not necessary.

Hill Dying Status: I saw the hill, but didn’t feel strongly enough to commit the calories to climb it.

#recommendation (or #strongrecommendation)– I’ve thought about this a lot. It’s kept me up at night. I dug in. I think I understand the tradeoffs.  You can choose not to take the recommendation, and go your own way, but please do it for good reasons.  Please dig in a bit yourself and have a well-reasoned rationale for why you don’t want to take the recommendation. Please don’t ignore or dismiss it out of hand. A response (either way) is politely requested. If it’s a #strongrecommendation then a response explaining why you’re not taking it is probably a good idea.

Hill Dying Status: I climbed the hill.  I breathed deeply I contemplated my life. I walked back down.

#plea — We don’t like issuing edicts or directives at HubSpot. But…please, please, please just do this. Trust works both ways, and I need you to trust me on this.  If you still feel compelled to resist, something’s not right, let’s chat. Maybe even in (gasp!) person.

Hill Dying Status: Dying on a hill is not on my bucket list, but if it were this would be a really good candidate.