Lead by fellow independents
From workshop leaders to guest speakers to mentors, everyone involved with Manual Override is actively building their own independent career.
Shaina's the founder of Hello Generalist, writer, podcast dabbler, and coach to independent operators. Prior to going solo, she lead operations from Seed to Series B acquisition at Chewse, and was Chief of Staff at Yelp Restaurants. Shaina leads MO's business fundamentals workshops, and facilitates the weekly Small Groups. Behind the scenes, she works with Harry to make the whole program run smoothly.
Harry runs OneTwo Growth Studio, helping teams become AI-forward through strategy, building, and enablement. He's a management consultant turned five-year Chief of Staff turned AI practitioner. Harry brings the AI lens to Monday workshops and leads Wednesday Build Labs — hands-on-keyboard sessions where you actually build tools for your business. Behind the scenes, he helps run the program and supports Hello Generalist as it becomes more AI-forward itself.
We know independent work.
Though Manual Override was started in 2025, our sister company Hello Generalist has been the home for independent operators to find fractional, advisory, and project work since 2022.
Many million
$ paid out
We've paid out many millions of dollars to operators through Hello Generalist placements.
500+
people helped
In our workshops, we've helped over 500 people refine their positioning and build their businesses.
100s
jobs placed
We've placed hundreds of people in fractional, project, and advisory roles through Hello Generalist.
A letter from the founders
Hi, we're Shaina and Harry, friends and longtime startup operators who now build a variety of income streams around our core skills — we're living this path right alongside you. We think independent entrepreneurship has a big part to play in the future of work, so we started Manual Override to help others make the most of the opportunity.
This is a new career path for us tech folks: working as entrepreneurs, but not building traditional tech startups. People like Lenny Rachitsky (opens in new tab), Mallory Contois (opens in new tab), and Wes Kao (opens in new tab) paved the way here: They built credibility and world-class skills in full-time tech jobs first, and now share their point of view broadly, managing multiple revenue streams around that core expertise.
We've seen first hand that this work isn't just interesting, but can be more sustainable than a full-time job. When you have five clients and three revenue streams instead of one employer, you're never one layoff away from zero. When you monetize your skills across channels and products, you build leverage that compounds. When you own the definition of success, it can expand to include meaningful time with family, volunteering, and traveling, not just work.
This is, of course, easier said than done. Many of the best operators we know struggle to land on exactly what their special sauce is, or get caught up chasing 'perfect' instead of launching. More, making the leap from employee to entrepreneur is just plain hard: finances, focus, personal accountability.
And to add to the complications, there's a new requirement: AI. The operators who internalize this early — who don't just use AI, but redesign how they work around it — will have an unfair advantage over those who don't. Everyone else will feel like they're running uphill, chasing the new product of the week.
Most people trying to go solo are sitting alone in their guest bedroom home office, wrestling without guidance or accountability. They're figuring out positioning through trial and error. Undercharging because they don't know what to ask for. Dabbling with AI but never feeling confident. Wondering if they made a huge mistake.
We built MO to tackle all of that. We're portfolio careerists who have already figured this out, and will not just teach you what worked for us, but connect you to a network of people who will do the same. Startups have YC, 500 Startups, and TechStars to help. We built MO as the answer for independent entrepreneurs.
We hope to meet you soon!
Shaina and Harry
Direct access to a network of helpers
Accelerator participants can meet 1:1 with our Mentors for targeted support on their business. Mentors are successful independent operators who've built what you're trying to build, startup founders and tech leaders who know what companies need right now, and super connectors who can open doors with a single introduction.
Their #1 goal? To help you. They'll answer your questions, give candid feedback, and open their networks to people who can also help or hire you.
Want to get involved? Email us at hello@hellogeneralist.com
We're joined by exceptional guest speakers
Each week of the cohort features expert speakers to solidify workshop lessons and bring new perspectives. They give solo talks, lead workshops, offer group coaching, and bring casual AMA sessions, all meant to help our batch be more successful.
Email us at hello@hellogeneralist.com if you would like to get involved.
Spring 2026 Cohort
April 6 – May 15, 2026 · Limited to 25 people