The beginning: A Personal Story Of How I Became A Scrum Master

According to both Glassdoor and Linkedin, 2019 was the year that finally enlisted Scrum Master as one of the most promising jobs of the year. The result? We can say that the Scrum Master role has officially become mainstream.

Organizations have become more open to the benefits of agile approaches opening the door for new roles such as Agile coach, Agile delivery manager, and Agile consultant. On Quora you can find a handful of questions and answers about how to become a Scrum Master, what should you do in the first two weeks, how do you present the agile benefits in software development and such.

Yet, I’m feeling that nobody talks about their Scrum journey in genuine. You’ll hear about the struggle and the need for continuous learning, stories about day-to-day challenges, but less about the Scrum Master initiation itself.

When did you discover whether you are fit to become a Scrum Master or what you need to proceed with the role? WHAT exactly do you need after all? Who has to decide your SM fate? A manager, a team, or a company?

Source: Giphy

You will hear about many examples, but mostly the stories on how teams were intentionally involved in agile and Scrum training and sessions and trained for specific roles. Also, there are stories like mine where you become a Scrum Master unexpectedly and are left to be self — trained.

Both ways are legit if you are wondering which path to follow. You can wait for the company to send you on paid training, or you can be bravely foolish and try something not so conventionally organized.

Each way can work, and this is how it worked for me.

Uniting marketing and software development

My Scrum journey began a year ago, completely by accident. As one of my job responsibilities was to organize and lead different team-building events (including those that build stronger teams) the team manager/Product owner offered me to become a Scrum Master in one of the teams.

Shortly after I was dealing with the team and project that just started. My hands were full!

Scrum team

I didn’t know much about Scrum at the moment, to be honest. I could rely only on the interpersonal skills that I developed in my previous jobs and a couple of written blogs about Scrum as a framework.

Luckily, I had a great Product Owner and the team that was already familiar with the Scrum values thoroughly. They welcomed me warmly and taught me the basic principles that were necessary to fulfill my Scrum master duties.

They taught me that what defines the agile team the best is the ability to always strive to do better, to perpetually introspect, learn and adapt.

I felt that I was walking over eggshells many times.

And after a week or two, I started to realize where I am and what I have to do. Where to act precisely. I loved being involved in Scrum ceremonies.

It becomes natural for me to organize Retrospectives and to learn intensively about people, their needs, and how the software development process works.

If you still walking over eggshells, don’t.

After all, being agile also means being part of a continual improvement process, so it’s perfectly normal for teams and their Scrum Masters to improve themselves along the way.

Scrum board

Continuous learning no matter what

When I realized I had many soft spots, I understood the idea of continuous learning. I knew that I lacked experience and knowledge when it comes to reacting in different situations regarding the project and the team.

Your team is there to acknowledge which soft spots you have. On the other hand, that was the moment where I left no stone unturned in search of books, testimonials, and podcasts that could help me by providing me with useful examples. Check out what I used to improve my SM roles.

The ‘BIG 5’ helped me along the way

While I was looking for sources and training that could possibly help me, one book caught my attention, Scrum Mastery — From Good To Great Servant-Leadership, by Jeoff Watts.

In the book, the author perfectly emphasizes what makes a good leader, and how exactly a Scrum Master as a servant leader has to behave in order to enhance the team’s growth and output

Every beginning is hard and guiding premises such as this one can help you tremendously. Here’s what Watts recommends:

• Set a good team framework

Search for the definition of what makes your team great. Define which behavior you will tolerate in the team, and which you will not, what you expect from each other and what will make you better. Answers you got will help you to get to know the team more.

• Nurture their growth

Discover what motivates the team and what nurtures their talents and productivity.

• Always listen

Listen to what is being said, what is being implied, but also what is not being said.

• Be disruptive

Be a radical change agent within organizations and people who inspire energy for change in others around them. Push the team’s boundaries and always challenge the status quo.

• Invoke creativity

Be that inspirational change in the team.

What comes after?

After a year and a half, I still do rely tremendously on other people’s experiences. When I can’t learn on the spot, I read, and for us, rookies in Scrum, sometimes, books are the only backup we can have.

Still, when I fast rewind the period of my initiation I wouldn’t change anything, not a bit. I involved myself heartfully and willingly. I was insecure and worried but with each sprint, I became attached more to what Scrum offers.

How team achievements are celebrated after each sprint

Many times I wished I had some sort of official education, an easier learning curve, only to find out that I developed an interest because self-teaching was my single option.

The thing is, you’ll never, ever stop being a “learning-Scrum Master” no matter which learning curve you chose to follow.

There are many agile books you can read and analyze, and there are the ones you can always use as a reminder for many useful tips and tricks. In the end, rely on your team, and let them be your backup.