The End of Agility

People like to talk about Agility,

Sometimes that's all there is to it.

That's how this week's poem starts.

When I cite it to people, I often get an ironic laugh, as people think of the last time they heard someone speak of the 'A'-word.

It fades as the poem continues.

This time, in the Agile Tao podcast, Peter and I talk about the three virtues without which, though we can pretend all is well, agility stops at its track.

So many organizations declare themselves as agile, I've seen quite a few that rushed to train all teams, then measure them through some KPI - just so they could say "the transformation is over". Organizations that treat agility as a milestone rather than a journey.

In this poem, the Book of Tao gives a detailed checklist, a practical way to examine whether one is agile.

To be agile, it says, you have to have Courage, to make the right decisions, and you can't make them with no Compassion, you can't make the right decisions without understanding and feeling for the people who are affected by them.

You must also constantly Learn. As reality changes, new learnings are to be had, and these require you to have an Open Mind; to stop clinging to old beliefs - as comfortable as they may be - and challenge your assumptions with courage.

Finally, you have to be Flexible, which calls for Discipline. Flexibility requires keeping track of your compass, allowing you to navigate between the current situation and your values and principles, or you might get lost in the sea of politics.

Some more points we cover in this episode:

• Why thinking you are agile might indicate you are not, or in the words of Ram Dass (who passed away last month): If you think you're free, there's no escape.
• Why people love to talk about agility, the proof to which is the number of conferences there are (and articles such as this one ;)
• Why true learning is often experienced as a shock, and not as a deepening nuance.
• How does an organization look when these three are missing; when all that's left is the facade.
• And some more about Discipline: the ability to accept things as they are, and not as you want them to be.

You can hear the full conversation here and download the book here.

If you liked this article, you may be interested in the previous one: About Form, Functionality, Agility and Taoism or the next one About Fear and Harmony

And finally - a disclaimer:

All opinions expressed in the podcast and this post are our own interpretations of the Lao-Tzu, you are free and encouraged to have your own.