How Keeping a Journal as a Introverted Product Owner Keeps me Prepared
Gain insights and perspectives you would otherwise miss.
Sometimes I feel like agile software development is not for introverts. Especially during meetings it feels like we are expected to react to and give feedback on the fly.
As someone who likes to have some time to think before speaking, this can be a little frustrating. As a result a lot of what I want to say goes unsaid even though it may have been useful to the team.
The moment for speaking just passes me by.
This is why I like being extra prepared and take time to consciously engage with the topics around me. I do this in many different ways, but the one I want to talk about today is journaling.
I keep a journal specifically for work.
It is part of my wind down ritual — the last 10–15 minutes of my work day are spent writing in my journal. I always answer the same set of questions each day, as well as collecting my thoughts on what is currently going on.
This has the advantage to keep my in a positive mindset as well as prepare me for tomorrow’s daily, as well as the next retrospective.
I try to focus on the following questions:
What am I grateful for today when it comes to my team?
This question helps me frame my day in a positive light. It helps me think of my team in a positive way — even if some interactions are taxing at times. I also make sure to include any incident that was funny or made me smile to keep as an anecdote.
What did I get done today?
I need to document this anyway for billing my clients, but it also gives me a satisfying look at all the tasks I finished.
What challenges slowed us down the most?
The stuff we are stuck on, the stuff which slows us down. This is where we have the most potential to speed up and grow as a team. It’s what we should focus on improving in our next iteration.
This approach especially shines when it comes to retrospectives!
Whenever it is time for a retrospective I skim over my log for the past couple weeks and make a list of stuff I want to talk about. This makes sure I don’t just talk about stuff which happened in the last few days, but we also gain value from experiences which happened a while back. A ton of stuff is constantly going on at once, so it’s easy to forget about some things, even though it might be important to talk about them.
Saving anecdotes
During this curation process I also make sure to save any anecdotes that really stick out in my note taking system. Reliving these moments on occasion can make a huge difference in making us feel like we are a team (as well as just be fun).
Shift in Mindset
Since following this routine, my mindset has definitely shifted.
I feel more calm, more prepared.
Writing down my thoughts helps me get rid of any lingering negativity and focus on what really matters. To me and to my team.
I highly recommend at least giving it a try to everyone!
