Agility, The Winning Value Proposition:

Agile Team, Harnessing Opportunities.

The strength of the perfectionists sometimes becomes their greatest undoing. In attempting to cross all the T's and dot all the I's they get lost in their analysis. Thinking their trophy is in the planning they dig themselves in a hole. They thus fit Napoleon Hill's classic definition of failures. That is, "Unsuccessful people make decisions very slowly, and change them often and quickly."

The bureaucratic system, at the organizational level, is no different. These assume left to be perfect and are deceived to think they can get everything squared away at the planning stage. Life is not perfect. Never was. Never is and never will be. That is why some suppose life to be unfair. The question is compared to what. They also come at with the same supposition.

Life always seems to throw a few variables in the game. These are such as to make NO plan ever survive its first contact with reality. The lose nuts answer the roll call when the rubber hits the road. Yet, the bureaucratic laden organization still and perfectionist accomplice thinks they can get it all knocked out before execution.

"It is impossible to live without failing at something unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all - in which case, you fail by default." (J.K. Rowling) While the bureaucratic laden organization and perfectionist are neck-deep in their analysis the agile unit is already testing its plans out, Failing Early And Responsibly, learning the lessons, Recycling, and above all gaining momentum.

According to Napoleon Hill, "Successful people make decisions quickly (as soon as a critical mass of the facts is available, using the 80/20 rule) and change them very slowly (if ever)." It is not a perfect world. It is not a perfect game. It is an Infinite game though, with finite rules. Winning is all about staying ahead of the game. Where others see one opportunity, you are able to see ten and harness them in the shortest amount of time.

© 2020 Akin Akinbodunse


Links to Other Resources:
The Age of Agile (Stephen Denning)
Doing Agile Right (Darell Rigby + 2)
Coaching Agile Teams (Lyssa Adkins)