Definition
Progress Not Perfection
Virginia's personal operating principle for managing the tension between running a company and being a present parent. Applied to events: a done event beats a perfect event that never happened.
From the episode “IRL Events Are the New Moat”Hear it on the podcast1 episode
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Related terms in Leadership & Mindset
PresenceDeliberate attention to current experience without distraction.Process-Oriented Offshore RolesJob functions well-suited to remote offshore staffing because they operate on defined processes, measurable outputs, and minimal need for ambient daily communication with on-site leadership. Characteristics: clear deliverables, documented workflows, outcomes that can be monitored asynchronously, and limited dependency on reading the room or navigating unspoken organizational dynamics. Examples Nicolas cites: accounting, HR support, customer success, client onboarding, and software development. Contrast with roles that are harder to offshore: creative marketing (requires constant iteration with stakeholders), early-stage leadership (depends on filling undefined gaps), and any function where success requires being physically present in the team's daily culture.Productivity MetricThe actual definition of useful output inside a company, which may differ from superficial activity.Productivity ZombieA founder or builder who has over-optimized for AI-assisted output at the expense of emotional depth and felt experience. Produces more, feels less, and panics when the tools go down — because the tools have become a substitute for interiority rather than an extension of it. Ryan Estes's term for the failure mode of using AI to move faster without ever asking whether the direction is right.Quiet quittingDoing the minimum while staying on payroll.RapportThe trust and connection a mediator builds with each party before problem solving begins.Registered ApprenticeshipA formal apprenticeship program registered with the US Department of Labor or a State Apprenticeship Agency, meeting National Guideline Standards for a specific occupation. Required for contractors to meet IRA apprenticeship mandates on qualifying renewable energy projects. Notoriously complex to establish — 700,000 registered apprentices in the US represent just 0.4% of the workforce, a number propped up by billions in federal funding.Rookie Smarts (Hiring)The cognitive posture of an experienced person who has deliberately shed prior methodology and is relearning with fresh tools and assumptions. A mindset argument, not an age argument: a 50-year-old who has rebuilt their mental model around current AI capabilities is a Rookie Smart hire; a 28-year-old who already thinks they have it figured out is not. From Liz Wiseman's book Rookie Smarts. Pairs best with a senior domain mentor who can pressure-test architectural decisions.