Agile and Lean: Helping a Marriage and Getting Kids to Do their Homework

  Agile  

It was Saturday. Jeff had just finished mowing the lawn, so he turned on the TV to check the football score. His wife, Carmen, walked through the door at that moment, registered her husband lounging around watching the game, gave him “the look”, went to the kitchen and began to loudly unload the dishwasher. Their two children had exams coming up. Carmen yelled at the eldest, Aidan, to come down and finish his study sheet. He kept playing with his toys, deaf to his mother’s pleas. He just wanted to play, not do a never-ending stream of tasks that seemed to go nowhere.

Every day we face these challenges. How do we motivate people to do their tasks, without conflict and misunderstandings…not only at work but also at home? Rather than pushing people and forcing them to do something, create thed esire to do it. Providea system that provides structure, and let people figure out the best way to work.

Setting up the work queue: Let’s go back to our family example. Jeff and Carmen create a to-do list of the things that need to get done, and prioritize tasks as follows:

1. Fill the car with gas
2. Deposit checks in the bank
3. Mow the lawn
4. Fix the broken door hinge
5. Paint the children’s new table
6. Get the tax return done
7. Discuss where they should go on summer vacation, etc.

Set realistic and achievable…

Please log in or sign up below to read the rest of the article.