Agile Development Blog

Last year I entered the Marine Corps Marathon. I’d never run more than 10K in my whole life, but I felt the urge to do a marathon at least once. And of course I didn’t want to just finish. I had to get close to my friend Dave’s time who did 3:17 in the Loch Ness Marathon.

Runners in the Loch Ness Marathon pacing themselves

So I started an ambitious training program. As time progressed and I was not getting any faster, I started training harder. Four weeks before the race I had to pull out with a stress fracture and slightly torn Achilles tendon.

As an Agile coach, I had failed to heed my own counsel.

I tell my students that the number one cause for failure with Agile development is scaling too fast. Always start with baby steps.

Looking for a better way to train, I was intrigued by Danny Driver’s book Chi Running: A Revolutionary Approach To Effortless, Injury Free Running. He says that the optimal conditions for running and the fundamentals of the method are:

• Great posture
• Relaxed limbs
• Loose joints
• Engaged core muscles
• A focused mind
• Good breathtaking technique

He says the benefits of running are:

• Great posture
• Relaxed limbs
• Loose joints
• Engaged core muscles
• A focused mind
• Good breathtaking technique
• Plus more energy!

His point? The process is the goal.

Similarly with Agile teams, the optimal conditions and fundamentals of the method are:

• Deliver highest value first
• Release early and often
• Shared vision
• Empowered collaborative decision making
• Engaged customer proxy
• Sustainable pace

The benefits of Agile are:

• Deliver highest value first
• Release early and often
• Shared vision
• Empowered collaborative decision making
• Engaged customer proxy
• Sustainable pace
• Plus more energy!

I realize now that if I’m headed the right direction with the fundamentals, I will reap the benefits without the burnout. This year I’m entered in the marathon again, but I’m going to take it easier with the training and not care where I finish in the race.

Same with Agile – get headed on the right path, pace yourself, look back often to check your process and you will achieve your goals.