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Going all in - Consulting, Writing, and more.

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    John Partee

Tl;Dr - I'm burnt out. I have been a long time. I'm selling my time, only on my terms (via calendly - short term only) to advise. Think of my team like software attorneys - you pay us for good advice, we're (not actually that) expensive but we tell you so up front.

I refuse to play the sales game, if you need help with anything from cyber and code quality policy to deep learning (to DevOps to ROIP to Cat generators to 35mm film projectors to js- I've done so much weird stuff and have so many friends like me)

We don't want to write the code for you - that'll be way more expensive. I'm not starting tomorrow, I burnt myself out left to my own devices. This is me trying because it's energizing - I'll engage more as I find the systems to make this work, but building systems is hard when you have control.

Jarringly, I do.

I'm an over explainer and I need you to understand that up front - scroll to the bottom for contact info. I communicate in stories (but not #userstories).

I am not open to a new full-time job, or working for equity today.

Longer story

Turns out I'm one of those SOF veterans with PTSD. I need clear communication, a clear calendar, and complete transparency to be effective. I had a stress flashback the other week because I had set no work boundaries (again)

old me, in uniform

SSgt Partee (pictured above. not pictured, the yelling) rolled in and gave some shockingly direct feedback to some folks and negotiated a severance so I have some time off. I was an asshole - my frustrations bubbled over.

In retrospect I've also likely had bipolar disorder (type 2) my whole life - the air force feels like one big manic episode now. Stress makes me a little manic, I can hyper-focus, and it's how I've gotten where I am today. Seeing a therapist and talking honestly with my doctor was the key - mood stabilizers snapped me back to reality and I'm not on a large dose yet.

My working theory (like gravity, not conspiracy-) is I have some sort of executive dysfunction and need to run my life like it. Traditional jobs don't work well for me, I get bored as soon as I hit the maintenance phase, but I'm really good at a lot. Evernote (and physical notebooks) have been life-changing for me, I can just get it all out of my head. I can process it there on paper. I need to run that schedule myself though - my turnaround times will be a day or three sometimes so I have time to send you (more) resources.

The Joint Communications Unit taught me a lot of things, especially how to manage under pressure. I'm building a company from the ground up with boundaries first. I have a handful of folks working part-time (mostly on marketing, an enigma to me) to help us land some calls.

I ask for cash upfront (and I am not interested in equity in general) because I pay folks what they're worth. We're all part-time because we're starting from the ground up. I can't pay for insurance yet (a priority) but I suspect my friends have enough need for cloud, DevOps, JS, ML and so on... We can book some hours and fund this idea.

My initial rates will be lower and hours higher until I see if this works. I'm no business guy - I'm just going to set my rate like a contractor would. If you think it's too high that's fine - I'm going to start writing more as I process all this too, I love doing it. Pitch me article ideas. If we make that daily I'd be happiest - I want to write but have to fund this circus first!

Sensible Defaults is born I guess, we at least have a wait list. I'm not going to publish my calendly for a few weeks as I recoup, but get in touch if you have a project. We can book a fifteen-minute call.

Jump on the newsletter too - I have a ton to talk about and need accountability. Building in public is how I'm doing it!

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