October 29, 2020
There is no walkthrough. There is no guide. There is no step-by-step. There is no one size fits all. There is only being as good as you possibly can be and always working towards that goal. No instructions required.
October 28, 2020
That’s the problem with problems. No one wants to own them. After all, who wants something that has something inherently wrong with. Sure there are good problems – too much money, too many customers, too much too learn – finding owners for those problems are easy. I’m talking about the problems that keep you up at night. The problems you lose sleep over even when you’re awake. The problems that permeate your every thought. The problems that can make or break a release. We all know the problems exist. But what we don’t know, at many points in time, is
October 25, 2020
They are. Being in a ZOOM or a TEAMS call with a bunch of other people, talking about something. You’re safe. You’re not putting anything new out there. You’re not challenging anything. You’re not taking any action. You’re not changing direction. You’re talking about what may or may not happen. You’re thinking about what someone just said. In these cases, meetings feel safe because we can talk about things but we do after them is up to us, and everyone else. The ones that make meetings dangerous? Come with a plan. Know the objective. Have the hard conversations and work
October 21, 2020
You wouldn’t change your oil while on the highway. Or change the materials in a house half-built with a few days to go. Or start teaching a new lesson when the first one isn’t finished. Or turn on the dishwasher when only a few dishes are in it? Then why are you running a Sprint Retrospective while your team is working on delivering said work? They are in a different mindset, a different zone, a different area of delivery altogether. Wait until the sprint is over, give people time to collect their thoughts, then ask the questions that you want
October 16, 2020
You don’t notice it when you’re there, in the moment, having the meeting. You notice it the next day. Or maybe in a meeting later in the week. The timing isn’t precise, but what is precise is that statement that signifies the gap. “I didn’t know we discussed that?” Followed of course by statements by everyone else who was in attendance… “Did we discuss that? What was the outcome?” “Of course we talked about.” “Weren’t you there? Was that when your mic was off?” The list goes on and on but you get the idea, confusion. Confusion at the end
