The first Agile coach
All complex things in the world,
in the beginning were simple…
The first Agile Manifesto was written a long time ago. About 2,500 years ago to be precise…
It was written by one of my heroes, Lao-Tzu (老子)
Agility is the art of reactivity, of empathy with customer needs, of transparency, and mainly a way to swim and thrive in a world that keeps changing, where yesterday’s requirements do not match today’s needs. In other words, the art of delivering a project in the now, of being constantly aware and reactive to the current needs of the customer and the current state of the project and team.
An agile product lives in the present.
The “agile way of working” values reacting to reality more than sticking to a plan. It profits greatly from short feedback loops that sample reality and adjust plans accordingly.
Its main by-product is Happiness : the most visible indicator of a good transformation is the happiness of employees, customers, and a happier and less stressful organisation.
Another by-product is Alignment — once everyone is connected to reality, there is less friction and misunderstanding.
Taoism, Buddhism, and — in recent years — Mindfulness are similar in both purpose and by-products.
They are all different ways of existing in the present and responding to it, of appreciating the richness of the now and diminishing the value of living the memories of the past or worrying about the imagined future.
And their by-products are astonishingly similar: personal happiness and a sense of harmony, a common universal goal.
When asked who are the agile figures that inspire me, although many names come to mind, the one on top and the most influential agile coach I know is Lao-Tzu, the author of the book of Tao, most often called Tao Te Ching.
The way I read the story of Lao-Tzu (6th–5th century BCE), it is the story of someone who lived by agile principles while trying to help an organization far more complex than any modern-day mega enterprise: the Chinese Empire.
True words are not beautiful, beautiful words are not true
Just like a modern-day agile coach, he understood that to change things fast, you have to move slowly.
Just like a modern-day agile coach, his words were not always comforting.
Just like a modern-day agile coach, he dealt with artificial structures and rigid belief-systems.
And just like a modern-day agile coach, his guidance and advice was not always well-accepted.
In historical perspective Confucius had the immediate upper hand, applying a process and hierarchy-based structure in the (then crumbling) chinese empire. Yet the spirit of Lao-Tzu echo nowadays stronger than ever in both eastern and western cultures and his words serve (in my eyes) as the strongest foundation of the Agile movement.
…I am excited to dedicate a Happy-Melly challenge-week to applying the teachings of Lao-Tzu to our daily life!
The challenges consist of a set of five meditations to help you examine your work through the Taoist prism (as I perceive it), and experience the Taoist philosophy/ mindset through your working week.
a journey of ten thousand li starts with one step
Hope you join me and enjoy the journey.
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