All projects have a time for discussion, conflict, and disagreement, but eventually you have to settle on a course of action and execute the plan. True for spacecraft, true for life.

Some people love the first part! That’s great - they’re good at keeping an open mind and exploring the space and questioning everything. It’s an incredibly valuable skill, but eventually you have to move on to...

...executing the plan. This is often a different skill set. Turns out I’m mor comfortable with this than the former. Some folks struggle with the transition, trying to keep asking the big “why” questions even when you’re starting to build. That can really slow progress.

The execution phase tends to be more satisfying for me (I like seeing things get finished), but I also know if you pick a path too quickly, you can really end up going the wrong direction.

Life is like this a lot too. There are times for listening, questioning, and action, and people whose strengths are in those areas. Learning those strengths / weaknesses about yourself and your community (friends or professional) is a great way to figure how to build a team

It’s honestly a bit easier in spacecraft than in life (I never thought I’d say this) because there are schedules and budgets, but creating similar milestones in life can really help.

I can tell you I’ve spent too much time thinking about vacation plans before executing and paid a very real dollar cost for this.

In teams though it’s also important (especially if you’re leading the task) to convey that “schedule” to folks and to foster the right environment.

You don’t want to shoot down ideas too early (look at Curiosity’s / Perseverance’s landing approach and tell me people didn’t have hesistations or push for historical approaches), but once you’ve chosen a path and done enough work to prove things are possible,

time to let people know that the focus should be on how to make all the details close. Sure there’ll be areas that stay flexible for longer, but “why did we choose this?” isn’t fruitful anymore

I’ve found learning my own preferences has helped me not just professionally, but also personally, and can work on my weaknesses. Recognizing my biases, I’m better now at knowing when to listen to a friend’s concern instead of trying to solve it, or when to shift a conversation.