In addition, the
pace of technological change is one of the highest ever for the history of
the industry - techniques and methods which we experts only a year ago may no
longer justify themselves today. There is a constant need for learning new
things, standing at the forefront in technology and business. You
cannot even wait a few months to produce your products, you need to work
fast. You need to get use to change, and not
just get used to it, in order to survive in this industry you should embrace
change as a way of life, as your new reality. Customers
are not waiting; they change their minds because their reality changes as
well. Manufacturers must recognize that and develop methods to get used to
the change.
One of the things we're working on
in agile coaching is reducing these risks and teaching the agile teams’ new
ways to respond quickly to change, Improve and
internalize practices that change rapidly. The
pace of change in the world is only growing. We'd
better get used to it!
The need to develop study habits and adapt to changes is the
root of many coaching process - if it is the programmer that needs to deal
with new operating systems, or a parent that has to deal with changes in
the needs of his children and his role as a parent, or if we need to take
on a diet, quitting smoking, changing business dealing and so on.
Change and the human need to deal with, is universal. As coaches we all recognize this need,
particularly the difficulty that our coachees , learn and understand what
they need to change , and mostly the need to preserve this change, so it
will not dissipate within a week and a month, but will become a habit of a
new life. Which is exactly what agile
coaching does - helping coachees to change old habits effectively and
quickly, to leave the comfort zone and make a habit of dealing with the new
change.
So what can we learn from agile that can be related to personal
coaching? Among other things:
● Create constant Heartbeat Or constant pulse - Agile teaches us to produce a pulse of
constant action - setting objectives, walking towards the goal immediately,
collecting feedback from the environment and learn from them and setting a
new destination. And back again,
creating a uniform and constant ‘doing and reflecting’ rhythm. This type of
“Rotation" (of placing a goal – moving toward the goal – collecting
feedback - and a setting new target) is usually set to be from 1 week to
four weeks, while the tasks are relatively small - sometimes the whole process
takes an hour or even a few minutes.
The 'secret' that enables persistence over time is to maintain
a constant Heartbeat. A team that finds that it work for them with the
rhythm of the round of every two weeks, would be good if they continue with
the exact same rhythm over time. The
team should not be tempted to "change the pace" - even if
there is pressure to finish something just in a week and a half. Using Agile We have learned
that changing the rhythm of things is like changes in a human heart rate – the
price we pay in the long term is greater than the immediate shock that we
may make.
● Visibility - Is
key . Things happen when you see them. We
will visualize all that stands in front of us and we will manage it. In some cases we will place big whiteboards and
sticky notes that will symbolize the road a head and the goals we
see and though create full transparency for ourselves and our friends to
the journey.
Using agile teaches how to reflect
clearly in a way that cannot be ignored-(processes, mindsets, priorities,
problems and solutions) . Using
big visual boards)
Information Radiators) Has become commonplace in agile teams. You will not find them
looking at a computer screen, looking for a file with a list of tasks, but
standing together in front of a huge board on the wall, where you see the
tasks, failures, obstacles, strengths of the team and their shared vision. The entire team related
information is large and clear for all to see, in an atmosphere of
trust, mutual support and joint motivation for action (Team Spirit).
In Agile personal coaching we use
similar tools to help the coachee manage the process of his transformation. Using the board’s
visibility allows the change to become a sustainable habit over time.
● Kaizen - Routine of continuous
improvement - The
idea of continuous improvement is first of all, do it all the time, and in
small doses. It is particularly effective when
adapting a routine or (the way we like to call it) a pulse, which we examine
our doing all time.
Agile holds a structured processes
called Retrospective- This is
an hour of "coaching
session", held once a week / two weeks (depending on the rhythm of the
team), the session is run by a coach (or by
a Scrum Master). The purpose of the meeting is to allow the team -
together -to define goals and objectives of improvement – related to the
process of their work, interpersonal conduct, dealing with obstacles and
problems, and basically anything they see as contributing to or interferes
with their effective conduct together as a team.
In agile Personal coaching we also
employ similar methods to create a pulse of progress, improvement and
problem solving in the coachee. Make
the improvement itself - a habit for life.
● Value
Focus- Value as a motivator – in order for me to be able to
recognize the value generated for my own benefit, its best that I will
embrace an approach of which I think of myself as a customer that his money
is important to him and his quality requirements are high, and also think
about myself as a provider, and provide myself the best service I can.
A very important agile principle
is placing myself in my client's shoes (as a product manager or as someone
that is responsible in any way to provide a service). This
allows us to think like a customer and make decisions - sometimes not easy
decisions – that will ultimately serve the customer, and will allow us to
deal better with pressures directed against us from management, other
stakeholders, and most importantly - ourselves. Agile developed structured tools and
techniques to define customer needs from the perspective of the customer
himself. Sometimes (and highly recommended to
do it as a routine ) we will seek our customer real feedback.
In agile personal coaching we apply the same principle -we
Identify the true value for the coachee in every decision or in any
progress direction, in order to get to the bottom of it (and quickly), and
realize what the coachee really want and need in life.
● Baby Steps
- walk in small steps - Smaller is easier to control, easier to make a mistake and
easier to fix.
In our experience, Effective change and the ability to make
things happen - Better be happening gradually and
Incrementally. Using Feedback Loop will allow a proper understanding of the
events in the changing reality.
An agile Heartbeat (mentioned above), in small doses produces
the ability to cope with changes, react to them and learn. This pulse, in small doses, creates a
flow of action, and routine, but a kind of routine that creates special
feeling of success. Once we get used to it,
this routine will become a part of us and embrace the change as a habit.
● I am my own organizer
and director, and I learn to do it well even after
the coaching is long over and not just as part of a coaching period.
The concept of self-management and self-organization Is fundamental in
agile - It
enables employee empowerment, allowing him to discover and invent for himself
the best way he could function. It's
not as simple as it sounds - it is necessary to create supporting
frameworks and set clear boundaries. The role of the manager is turning at
180 degrees here – from a manager that decides for his employees their tasks
to a manager that defines responsibilities, supports, protects workers
against interference and allows them to maximize their abilities (Servant
Leadership).
The principle of self-organization, decision making and taking
responsibility for them and for your own actions (both over the successes
and over the failures) - is also an essential part of the agile personal coaching
– it’s the accountability and responsibility the coachee in the coaching
process, to his own life and those around him.
There is so much more to write about agile ... so much .... There is an entire
infrastructure in the heart of the agile practices that ultimately enables
action and constant growth, Continuous
improvement in work habits and life.
So what's next?
We wish to take the knowledge,
methods and concepts of agile into the world of personal coaching – we
initiated a project called Jelly – agile coaching. This
is the first article in the series.
And best of all .. Do
not forget to enjoy the way - it's also one of the most important agile principles. **
Shirly Ronen Harel and Avi
Naparstek - both personal trainers and activists for many years in the high-tech
industry. Members of the Agile Life group Whose
goal is to take the agile into other areas of life (education, art,
society, etc.) and project partners Jelly - Agile coaching- designed to
bring the world of agile into the personal coaching area.
**
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