I've actually done this and my former co-worker wrote back and helped me out. So... Lately, I've trended towards not trying to work with people at future jobs

I've actually done this and my former co-worker wrote back and helped me out. So... Lately, I've trended towards not trying to work with people at future jobs I've already worked with as I don't like the pressure of having to live up to whatever expectations they or others have. I'd rather someone have reasonable expectations that I can actually beat and vice versa.