accelerator will face some challenges, perhaps providing another pivot in Zielke’s journey through entrepreneurship.
Here is a slightly edited version of our conversation:
Xconomy: What’s the hardest lesson you’ve learned about managing people?
Gabriella Draney Zielke: I have a very hard time holding people accountable. This pays everyone a disservice as people don’t know where they stand. Where I used to see it as being mean or not giving grace, I now approach it as a positive indicator of forward movement. No one likes to be told that they aren’t meeting expectations, but if you wait until it becomes a big problem, then you’re dealing with a big problem and not just a quick course correction. Employees need a good feedback loop and managers need to provide both the positive and negative feedback.
X: Tell me about your early influences.
G.D.Z.: I grew up living in my head a bit (still do), so my biggest influences were writers and characters in books. On finance, I became a Warren Buffett fan very early, along with his early influence Benjamin Graham. Regarding the universe, Stephen Hawking still influences my beliefs. His ability to explain complex concepts in a simple way reminds me daily that regardless of how intelligent you are, it doesn’t matter until you master communicating your ideas and beliefs. your ideas and beliefs don’t matter until you master communicating.
X: Where do you think your drive comes from?
G.D.Z.: I still don’t know where my drive comes from. I’ve had an insatiable thirst for life since I was very young. I want to experience as much as possible and help others do the same. I love figuring things out.
X: What did you want to be when you were a kid?
G.D.Z.: When I was really young I wanted to be a teacher, then it switched to astrophysics. I’m very excited about the private space industry.
X: If you got stranded on a desert island, what’s the one thing you would have to have with you?
G.D.Z.: My husband!
