I see articles about common (mis)management practices come up on HN semi-regularly, and I have to wonder if I've had uncommonly good experiences or if we only hear from the people who've had uncommonly bad experiences.

In my current and previous roles (both working under the CTO, coincidentally), 1:1s were quick little meetings at mutually-convenient times. We got through any uncertainty in my short-term plans, sometimes did a little brainstorming about longer-term work, then got back to it. If a day didn't work for either of us, we'd push till another day or the next week, no pressure. Seems like a simple and helpful use of 10-15 minutes per week.