How to make a good impression at work / how to get promoted

• Look for areas where you can combine an interest or skillset of yours with a need of the company.
  • Example: Sonja's proactive behavior while she was living with me at 38RI is a great example (she painted the rooms). You're kind of killing two birds with one stone, except one of the birds is a bird you're trying to kill (she was interested in painting), and the other bird is a bird the company is trying to kill (the owners wanted the rooms to look nice).
• Amazon - Moral Mazes: The World of Corporate Managers
  • this was recommended by some guy in a HackerNews discussion

• At Infer:
  • You need to socialize the right amount.
    • Don't socialize too much, especially if you're highly-paid, or you may be resented for not giving the company their money's-worth.
    • But you also do need to socialize, or you'll be resented for coming across like you don't like the people you're working with.
  • Part of it is luck / out-of-your-hands.
    • Example: If the people in the role you're aiming for are currently very homogeneous (lots of white men), and they decide that they need to get more diverse (i.e. they are using that heuristic to promote people), and there are a limited number of those spots available, and you are a marginal candidate, you may face more of an uphill climb.

When doing a broad task:

• ask a bunch of clarifying questions! don't be reluctant to ask.
  • When I was hiring someone on upwork I saw this was a big issue; I would give the person an assignment but not fully specify what I was looking for,