3 Actionable Tips For Living A Productive Life Using Agile Principles (with free examples)

My mentor told me over a decade ago that life is a project. This statement is more in line with how we manage our time and resources, which determines our outcomes.?

A lack of a productive culture can indicate serious issues for an individual or organisation, particularly in a fast-paced industry. If you discover that your organisational culture is unproductive, you must investigate the reasons for this and devise solutions to motivate your workforce.?

Technology is rapidly evolving, and there are numerous software development methodologies available to meet development requirements.

Agile is a method of project management and software development that is iterative. As a servant leader and agile project manager, I understand the value of productivity and how it affects growth. Here are some agile principles that will help you live a more productive life.?

They are as follows:?

? Breaking down concepts into smaller tasks

? One in one out (one goal at a time)

? Retrospectives with Lite burn down reports (reflect and review)?

Breaking down concepts into smaller tasks?

It's difficult to imagine all of the lines of code or design pixels that will go into a software product at once. It exemplifies the phrase "breaking your brain."?

Instead, most people divide larger problems into smaller tasks for development or design. There's an overly complicated process in Agile where you assign "story points" to each task and estimate how many tasks you can fit into a given sprint. However, at its core, it is about breaking down ideas into manageable chunks.

You can apply this to your daily life by breaking larger concepts down into tasks. It is a simple way to achieve your goals while avoiding burnout.

For example:

• When I organised a conference, I started by setting a reminder each day to do research and follow up with team members.?
• When I want to reach a yearly goal, I set monthly goals to gradually ladder up to the end results I want to achieve.

Life can be? overwhelming when you only focus on the bigger picture.?You can achieve more by giving yourself attainable tasks often.

One in and one out (one goal at a time)?

Agile sprints must be time-boxed because you can only fit so many tasks into a sprint. If a stakeholder or colleague tries to fit a new task into that sprint mid-stream, you rally the troops and choose something to push into the next sprint so that the overall estimate of hours remains the same. It means that one goes in and one goes out.?

As humans, we can only handle so much on our plates at once. You can use this methodology to achieve your goals while avoiding burnout in your personal life as well!?

For example:

• Attending meetings, hangouts or dates around the same region is helpful, so you can plan accordingly. If something new or unexpected arises, it is moved to the following week.
• When I have a full desk,? I do not start another task until I have finished one. Wrapping up one project before starting another helps my psyche.?

You know when you have excess ? and when you have room to take on more. Don’t let others’ needs dictate what you can handle at a time. Keep a manageable headspace.

Retrospectives with Lite burndown reports

We can't push for progress in the future unless we reflect on where we've come from. With retrospectives and burn down reports, Agile ensures this happens. A retrospective is a meeting in which the team discusses what went well, what could be improved, and what they learned during a particular sprint. A burndown report compares the hours and tasks completed to what was planned.?

When I was fully engaged in Agile, it was the burn down report that drove me insane. I'd spend all day in meetings just to spend time every evening compiling a burn down report.

????While the methodology could be improved, the concept is unquestionably sound. Take the time to reflect on how you performed so that you can improve in the future.?

For example:?

• When it comes to achieving yearly goals, I review my progress every month to ensure that I am on track. This way, I can keep track of the goals I've completed and those I still need to complete.?
• ?When I coach, I keep track of my clients' progress so that I know where we picked up from, where we are at and where we should be. This informs the next approach.?

Agile is famous for a reason. Its principles have enabled the creation of some of the world's best products and tools. Moderation is essential in everything you do, and you can reap many of Agile's benefits without becoming completely overwhelmed by its concepts and terminology.?

If you only take one thing away from Agile, make it these three principles:?

? Breaking down concepts into smaller tasks

? One in one out (one goal at a time)

? Retrospectives with Lite burn down reports (reflect and review)?

You do not have to live your life solely by rules and principles, but you can increase your productivity and growth by incorporating some of these Agile principles into your daily life.

Thank you for reading.

Credit: Michelle Murphy

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About me:

I am an agile project manager and people development expert who helps individuals and organisations in increasing productivity, performance, and profitability. I am a lazy writer who loves football and spending time with my children.