Hi, I’m Kenyatta

TLDR: Hey you! You’ve landed on the personal user manual for me – a very quick tour of my personality and quirks. This by no means is a must read. Feel free to skim it, read in its entirety, or none at all. The aim is to help colleagues understand me better, to make our relationships easier, more fun, and productive :) If you have questions or suggestions for changes, feel free to get in touch.

I was born and raised in Chicago but relocated to the Bay last year. I’ve traveled to over 20 and I’m super excited to knock another country off my bucket list in January ‘24: Morocco! My favorite cuisine is Japanese and if I could, I’d eat Ramen Nagi everyday, no really, I once went everyday for 2 weeks straight. Don’t judge me, lol.

A few fun facts about me

• I created a game called Trading Races. Trading Races is a card game that’s part party game, part educational, and 100% thought-provoking. It was even featured on Vice News!
• I also like to work with my hands! Specifically Macramé. I create small and large scale commissions when I find time.
• I have a ten year old Jack Russell Terrier named Lola. She’s the love of my life.
• I love a good gif ;)

My values

• My high expectations are matched by my commitment to support people in meeting them.
• I value efficiency and strive to maximize the return on effort. I often ask for historical context as a starting point for iteration.
• I value resourcefulness, solutioning, and proactivity. I often move fast and pivot quickly.

What gives me energy at work/ I do my best work when…

• When I’m trying to solve a challenging problem with other people I trust and admire.
• I work best when the goal is clear but I have the autonomy to figure out how to get there.
• When the input has a clear relationship to the output.

​​What impedes my best work

• Territorialism; I truly believe that collaborative work yields the best results.
• Not following through, especially when there are dependencies.
• Micro-management can often make me feel deflated or untrustworthy. Providing the problem and the goal while allowing me to find a solution often works best.
• Identifying problems without looking for solutions. I prefer to avoid spiraling and focus energy on driving things forward.
• When I don’t have a clear sense that your actions are ultimately helping people.
• Playing telephone; sometimes the quickest way is to go straight to the source.

Things people might misunderstand about me:

• I am an introvert posing as a professional extrovert.
• I learn best through experience/experimentation and have a strong bias toward action.
• When in a rush I may jump to conclusions, it is OK to ask 'can we take more time to discuss this’.
• When I ask for clarification on projects or ideas folx may think I am challenging them — I don’t mean to; I am trying to gain a deeper understanding.

My superpower is:

• Relationship building
• High level of execution
• Identifying a problem and driving solutions
• Developing processes/protocols
• Being a multipotentialite