What's In A Word?

April 29, 2024

We agilists love to define things - and redefine them, ad infinitum. Nothing wrong with that - but what happens when we actually translate? In my class this morning students read the manifesto in their native languages, then compared them to the English. Some said, "this translation is wrong." Why? Because, for example, in place of Individuals and Interactions, they had the words (in the other language) People and Collaboration.

?? .... is that wrong? I kind of liked it. Some interactions are negative, some individuals are selfish. Collaboration is always a positive thing in a work setting, and agile deals with groups of ... people, not groups of individuals. To me, the translation still works.

Here's another one - instead of "responding to change" the words meant "be ready to change." Now that one really is significantly different in meaning, but again, is it wrong? Think about it - if you are truly ready to change, that implies that, when change comes along, you will respond to it. And in my coaching, I have found that helping people learn how to be ready to change is key. Sprints sometimes go as planned, features sometimes do roll out as intended and on time. With agile, we don't change just for funsies. Instead, we are ready to change - all the time. We are on notice that things might change, and if they do, we know we can handle it. That is the power of agile, really - the ability to not freak out when our plans are disrupted, to anticipate change and apply healthy coping strategies that keep the work flowing forward in spite of change.