I’m Open to Work, Open to Learn is the title of a personal reflection—an article I’m writing on December 2025 to intentionally shape my mindset and personal manifesto for 2026 and beyond. Satya Nadella and the Microsoft Leadership Principles remind us that leaders must “reflect upon and synthesize the environment” to create clarity for themselves and for others. That is exactly what personal reflection does for me: it forces me to slow down, distill what truly matters, and define a clear direction.

It forces me to slow down, distill what truly matters, and define a clear direction.

That same intention led me to move my exercise routine to the early morning. Beyond the physical benefits, it helps me start the day grounded, deliberate, and mentally clear — anchored more in reflection than reaction. It creates space for my rational thinking to lead, balancing intensity with perspective, much like the difference I sometimes notice between speaking in English versus Spanish: same person, different cadence, different tempo of thought.

Writing my reflections—especially in the form of articles—is the mechanism that helps me turn inner thoughts into external commitments. It creates a natural cycle of evaluation and re-intention.

Over the past 6–8 months, I have focused on writing technical articles, sharing lessons learned and hands-on experiences from my journey to deepen my software engineer skills in the Microsoft Data Platform. It has been an intense, humbling, and incredibly rewarding journey—one I genuinely love.

Today, I want to share a different kind of learning.

This article is about leadership—not from books or frameworks, but from observation. From doing something I consider one of my core strengths: identifying patterns and acting on them.

Stepping into a different role has not paused that learning—it has amplified it. By observing leadership from the field, listening carefully, and executing rather than directing, I am discovering insights that are reshaping how I think about leadership, impact, and what it truly means to lead.

As I wrote in my article " Yes, Observability Is a Leadership Skill" moving from a leadership role to an individual contributor has given me a unique learning lens. It offered something I did not fully anticipate: a front-row seat to leadership in action—seen through the eyes of Technical Professionals and Solution Sellers who operate daily at the intersection of corporate intent and customer reality.

If and when I feel called to take that responsibility again, I am convinced this experience will make me a stronger leader—because it is sharpening how I think about communication, clarity, and impact. And as a reminder: we do not need direct reports to lead. In fact, learning to lead without authority is one of the most powerful leadership disciplines—especially when we do have formal authority.

Leadership Seen from the Field Hits Different

The IC experience of leadership is fundamentally different.

• ICs don’t design the strategy → they receive it.

• ICs don’t define the sales plays → they execute them.

• ICs don’t write the guidelines → they interpret them, often under pressure and ambiguity.

From this vantage point, I have been intentionally learning from leaders and people managers across the organization:

• How priorities are communicated

• How corporate mandates are translated into actionable direction

• How feedback—from people and employee surveys—is captured and addressed

• How consistently messages land across teams

• How behaviors—not titles—shape motivation and performance

What became clear to me is this:

Leadership effectiveness is defined not by intent, but by impact.

A strong strategy can lose momentum if it is not translated clearly to the field. A powerful sales play can stall if the why is not understood. A guideline can create friction when it ignores the realities of those who must bring it to life with customers.

As ICs, we feel every gap—but we also have a unique opportunity to step in and help make things better. Ultimately, success comes from the collective performance of every member of the team and organization.

Learning the “How” of Leadership

Without the responsibility of directing, we can focus deeply on how leadership happens—tone, framing, reactions, and behavior in moments that matter. Leadership reveals itself most clearly under pressure, uncertainty, and human complexity.

Forecast conversations are a clear example. When someone signals they will—or will not—meet the number, I observe whether leaders respond with pressure, curiosity, or support. Do they reward transparency? Do they first seek to understand the gap, or immediately push to close it? Just as revealing is peer reaction—what is said, what is left unsaid, and how silence shapes the next cycle.

Employee survey discussions show another pattern. When results are slightly above the company average, the narrative often becomes: “The company has an issue, but we are doing better.” I observe whether leaders treat this as success or unfinished work—and whether the response drives real improvement or quiet justification. Informal conversations after the formal message are often as insightful as the message itself.

Account planning and envisioning workshops reveal the tension between long-term vision and short-term pressure. Leaders set inspiring direction, yet discussions often shift quickly to pipeline and near-term execution. I watch how they balance inspiration with operational urgency—and how teams respond when big opportunities meet immediate scrutiny.

People review season exposes leadership at its most human. I observe how leaders balance results, context, effort, and risk—especially in difficult territories. When quota is missed, is the conversation about failure, learning, or trajectory? How are tough messages delivered while preserving both accountability and motivation? Here, I want to pause to recognize my manager, Angel Santiago, who is doing an outstanding job—I’m learning a great deal from him. Gracias!

The Power (and Risk) of Leadership Translation

One of the most valuable insights from this role has been understanding how leadership translates across layers:

• From corporate → to regional leadership

• From leadership → to frontline managers

• From managers → to technical and sales professionals

Every layer introduces interpretation. Every interpretation introduces risk.

When leaders:

• Provide clarity → teams move faster

• Communicate with context → teams make better decisions

• Show consistency → teams build confidence

• Model behavior→ teams replicate it

When they don’t, the field compensates—often by creating its own narratives.

This is where leadership style, communication tone, and decision transparency matter far more than we often admit.

Why I Still Believe in Transparency

Five years ago, I wrote an article for Forbes Technology Council, I shared seven leadership principles—originally written on a flipchart in my home office back in Redmond (WA, USA).

At the center of those principles was a simple belief:

Transparency creates Trust. Trust accelerates the Velocity essential for Success.

Five years later, nothing fundamental has changed.

This IC experience has not challenged those principles—it has reinforced them. If anything, it has made me even more convinced that transparency, clarity, and consistency are non-negotiable in modern leadership—especially in complex, matrixed organizations.

My Leadership Principles—Still Standing, Still Evolving

Here are the same seven principles I shared years ago, now reinforced by observation from the field:

1. Align Personal Values with Company Values and Culture When leaders live the culture, alignment becomes natural—not forced.

2. Be Transparent to Create Trust Not about sharing everything, but sharing what matters, early and honestly.

3. Bring Clarity About Vision, Goals, and Success Clarity enables autonomy.

4. Measure Team Performance Data removes bias, creates focus, and anchors accountability. However, it doesn’t always reveal how the team is achieving those results, especially in sales.

5. Build a Community Performance scales faster when people feel they belong to something bigger than themselves.

6. Lead by Example Teams follow behavior, not slides.

7. Prepare and Empower the Next Leader Leadership is about continuity, not control.

When I originally wrote about these principles, I said something that still holds true today:

Any new manager learns to manage the same way kids learn—by copying the behavior of their parents.

We absorb leadership styles from previous leaders, managers, and mentors. Then, over time, we refine—or reject—them based on experience.

This has reinforced the value of intentional observation: adopt behaviors that create clarity, trust, and momentum; discard those that create friction. And with maturity comes understanding why something exists—why to start, why to continue, and when to stop.

Why This IC Chapter Matters So Much

Staying in a technical IC role longer than expected is not an issue or an accident—it’s intentional, an opportunity to keep learning. And yes, there is too much still to learn:

• How strategy is truly experienced in the field

• How technical and solution sellers interpret leadership signals

• Where friction actually lives—and why

This experience is helping me:

• Become a more complete professional

• Build deeper empathy for execution roles

• Sharpen my future leadership instincts

When the opportunity comes to return to a management role, I will bring not only theory or past experience—but fresh, lived understanding of how leadership truly lands.

Final Reflection

Leadership doesn’t stop when you stop managing people.

Sometimes, the most powerful leadership lessons come when you step back, observe, listen, and execute alongside others.

Five years later, my principles still stand — what has changed is the depth behind them.

And that is how leaders truly evolve: through observation, experience, and the humility to keep learning.