Arriving at MIT Biology, I was excited to join a high-performing department full of thoughtful, motivated people from top to bottom. My expectations were surpassed in this regard. Yet I was also prepared to navigate big egos and face a difficult time getting collaborations started. On these issues I was very wrong: faculty here are generous, compassionate, and best of all they don’t take themselves too seriously. Starting and developing collaborations has been far easier than I expected.