Definition
Rapport
The trust and connection a mediator builds with each party before problem solving begins.
From the episode “97% of Lawsuits Never See a Courtroom”Hear it on the podcast1 episode
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Related terms in Leadership & Mindset
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.Progress Not PerfectionVirginia'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.Quiet quittingDoing the minimum while staying on payroll.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.RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing)Handing the whole hiring function to an external partner that embeds in your team, as opposed to placing a single role through an agency.Second BrainUsually a digital system for storing ideas and knowledge. Critiqued when it refers only to polished notes rather than real cognitive process.