First Week in Pristina — Building a Team Across Borders

From Blue Monday to New Heights: Lessons from Our First Week in Pristina

💙 This week, we kicked off our Kosovar adventure in Pristina—and let’s just say Blue Monday arrived a week late. First, Kobe forgot his phone at home. Then, I left mine in a taxi. Thanks to the incredible helpfulness of everyone here, a frantic trip back to the airport later, and my phone was safely back in hand. Lesson one: In Kosovo, even lost phones find their way home.

But as they say, it can only get better from there. And it did. Since Tuesday, we’ve been working intensively with Toska, our new UX Lead/Front End Engineer. As expected, it’s been a mix of trial, error, and progress—but the kind of progress that feels like the start of something special.

What I’ve learned in our first days together:

🟣 Don’t rush the fix. Stepping back to think through a problem beats jumping in with a quick (and often flawed) solution. Speed without forethought means more rework later.

🟣 Sometimes, the simplest solution works. After deep system changes, a good old reboot can save hours of head-scratching.

🟣 Setting up a new development system isn’t seamless—especially when juggling Linux and macOS. But every hiccup is a chance to build something more robust.

🟣 The power of being in the same room. Yes, remote work is the norm, but those first days together—coding side by side, sharing meals (we Belgians do love our food!), and getting to know each other—made all the difference. It’s the human connection that turns a team into a team.

🟣 Not every challenge needs a complex answer. Restarting the system, asking for help, or just taking a breath can work wonders.

Why this matters: At Ask Eve AI, we’re not just building a platform; we’re building a team that spans borders, time zones, and cultures. Toska’s energy and expertise are already pushing us forward, and I’m excited to see where this collaboration takes us.

🫱🏻‍🫲🏽 Your turn: How do you balance technical challenges with the human side of remote work? What’s your go-to tip for making distributed teams feel like a unit? Share your experiences in the comments—I’d love to hear them!