How We Work
What we touch and what we don’t.
How We work
Our comfort with operational and tactical ambiguity is coupled with a clear definition of success for all our work, minimum suitability requirements for our projects, and The Rules of how we run the business. These criteria are completely non-negotiable, and we think sharing them is the most effective way to communicate who we are and what we do.
Definition of Success
Create, rejuvinate, and strengthen values-forward projects, programs, and processes for national security institutions. Our efforts will make democracy more durable, enable people to live freer, and uniquely exploit strategic leverage points within a specific system. We are successful when we embrace nuance and do what we do best, rather than unnecessarily compromise in favor of more traditional business and operational models.
Minimum Suitability Requirements
Unanimous consent from Founding Partners that the project helps more than it harms, makes more than it breaks, and is not “too big to fail.”
The end state will be sustainable regardless of Unicorn Strategies’ long-term involvement, and is not dependent on our perpetual management and engagement.
Embraces existing institutional systems and foundations to fight villans instead of creating them.
We are prepared to be wrong, to fail, and to need to keep going.
Rules of the Business
RULE 1
We show up for democracy, freedom, and making more of both. Values-forward always, nothing else.
RULE 2
Do the right thing the right way for the right reason. No exceptions.
RULE 3
Ego ultimately serves no one - or at least not anyone we want to serve. Collaborate, ask for help, and build only when necessary.
The Problem will change over time; if it doesn’t you are doing it wrong. However - mission creep is dangerous and unacceptable. Don’t confuse the two.
RULE 4
Martyrdom is overrated. We must take care of ourselves in order to take care of anyone else.