I’ve been talking with people in various mediums about how their agile approach is working. All these people have similar problems: they are trying to use a specific agile approach. That approach isn’t working for them. They persist because otherwise, they’re not “agile.” They’re stuck on this one possible solution. They boxed themselves in. We […]
How Do We Recognize When We Box Ourselves In? Read More »
I like to be great at everything I do: my client work, my writing, my relationships. You name it, I want to be great at it. When I have the autonomy to learn and master the work, I can be as good or better than I hope. When I don’t have the ability to learn and
How Can You Become Better than You Fear, as Good as You Hope? Read More »
In Massachusetts, we get our cars inspected every year, on the anniversary of the month of the car’s first inspection. I’m lucky enough to have to inspect my car in January. In the cold, muck, wet, snow. You can tell how much I enjoy this. For inspection, timing is everything. Go too early in the
When is the Right Time? Read More »
Back in the ’90s, people started to talk about “sustainable pace.” We work to the best of our abilities during the day. We’re done and pleasantly tired at the end of the day. We could maintain this pace for weeks and months at a time. Maybe even years. (The very first agile books and the
What Is Your Sustainable Pace? Read More »
I’m in Paris at a conference this week. I was a keynote speaker, which is lovely for my ego. One of the participants asked me how long I’d been a consultant. I answered, “24 years.” He gave me that look, the one that says, “Really?” with one eyebrow up so high he almost had no
How Do You Maintain Your Emotional Balance? Read More »
I had lunch with a colleague today. We spoke about his freshman-in-high-school age (14?) child who was studying Computer Science. The student is actually solving problems with code (Python) and showing his work to others. I didn’t ask if he was working in a team, but he probably is. I didn’t take my first Computer
Which Number Career Are You On? Read More »
I meet people who want to do something new. They might want something new at work. They might want a new job. They might want to develop a new creative skill. What they want will take time. I often ask what they will do today. They look at me with that deer-in-the-headlights look. Sometimes, they
Who Will You Start to Become Today? Read More »
I’ve had the chance to speak with various folks over the past few weeks about their creativity. Some of them are developers or testers, worried about the IP agreements their companies want them to sign. Others are writers, worried about book contracts. In each case, the company or publisher wanted to “own” all the creative
Who Owns Your Creativity? Read More »
I was thinking about saying goodbye last week. I’ve been in groups where people slip away. Yes, they leave without saying goodbye. That’s not my style. In my family, we stand around and hug and kiss everyone for a while. It takes a few minutes to say goodbye. In Mark’s family, after we hug and
How Do You Say Goodbye? Read More »
I was thinking about being transactional: you do this for me, I do this for you. Often, the transaction is about money. When I pay for a thing—a book, a workshop, something that took you time to create—the transaction is a sort of pay-back. I take classes to learn various things: how to write better,
When Do You Pay It Back or Pay It Forward? Read More »