Okay, well, here’s me: I just wrapped my first week at 18F, where I’ve joined the team as a product designer. This first week’s been heavy on device setup, attending orientation sessions, and taking various self-paced classes — in short, learning what it means to work both in and for the federal government. It’s been a lot, to be sure, but it’s never felt overwhelming. These folks seem to have spent a lot of time thinking about the onboarding process, and how best to support the people in it.

This is all to say that it’s early days yet, and all the learning I’ve done this week is, like, the work before the work happens. But as I look back over everything I’ve seen since Monday, two themes emerge:

  1. Every single person I’ve met this week — and I’ve met quite a few! — has been smart, kind, and really happy to be working where they do. As someone new to the organization, that’s so encouraging to see.
  2. It’s, like, remarkably energizing to be around people who are really (really, really) passionate about making digital services work better for people.

I’ll probably have more to say later. But for now, I can say this: I’m glad to be here, and I’m looking forward to what’s ahead.