Do you have gnarly problems to solve? Gnarly problems have many causes and many effects. Some causes can become effects, especially if there are delays in the situation. Sometimes there are time delays built-in. You can’t think about the problem as a straight line, in a linear fashion. The problems bounce off each other. They have a […]
Do You Have a Gnarly Problem? Read More »
I follow lots of rules. I stay inside my lane on the highway. I wear my socks inside in—or, if you will, outside out. I always take my medication and I always take it the way I am supposed to. I even floss at night, the way my dentist tells me to do so. But
Which Rules Should You Break? Read More »
A few weeks ago, I was at a writer’s workshop. One of the writers wore t-shirt that said, “I’m a romance writer. What’s your superpower?” That got me thinking. Each of us has a superpower. Do you know what your superpower is? In that workshop, a number of writers had the romance writer superpower. Some
What’s Your Superpower? Read More »
I taught a Geographically Distributed Agile Teams workshop in Israel this week. During the simulation, the “tester” led the “developer”: as in “Let’s do this,” “Here’s what done means,” “ We should do it this way.” Someone commented that this was “Test(er)-Driven Development.” I laughed. Then I realized. Aside from “back seat drivers,” this happens
Who Is Driving Your Bus? Read More »
I saw this post and video last week: I’ve fallen. Now how do I get up? Scroll down to the video where the therapist discusses all the ways you can get up from the floor. I have to admit, I had no idea I should leave my head down when I got up from the
Are You Solving Problems MacGyver-Style? Read More »
Many people see themselves as their titles. “I’m a tester or developer or project manager or business analyst.” You are not your role. You are not your title. You are your values, your mission. You are most definitely not the number of people in your organization. You’ve heard managers say, “I have xx or xxx
How Do You See Yourself? Read More »
When you solve problems, do you find that you start with one question a lot? I often ask “Why” or a question like that. Not in the sense of “How did things get this way,” but “Why do things work like this?” For me, it’s a sense of curiosity. Here’s an example. For years, when
What Questions Do You Use to Solve Problems? Read More »
When we were purging the house, I asked the question, “Does this thing enhance my life?” It was a good question to see if I wanted to keep or eliminate whatever I was holding. It’s not quite the same question as “Is Anyone Using This?” That’s a question from the outside. “Does This Enhance My
Does This Enhance My Life? Read More »
In previous questions of the week, I’ve been focused outward, on the system. In this question, I invite you to focus inward. How do you matter, to yourself, and to others? We don’t ask ourselves this question enough. Too often, we suffer from Imposter Syndrome, where we think we are not good enough. Sure, we
How Do You Matter? Read More »
I write a quarterly newsletter for this site. Subscribers received this newsletter August 22, 2014. If you like the newsletter, you can sign up in the right navigation bar. Where Did the Pencils Go? At the gym this week, I searched for a pencil. I use a pencil to track my workouts. Am I
Where Did the Pencils Go? Read More »