{"id":322,"date":"2015-05-23T18:30:21","date_gmt":"2015-05-24T00:30:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.managerjs.com\/blog\/?p=322"},"modified":"2015-05-23T17:17:54","modified_gmt":"2015-05-23T23:17:54","slug":"an-irritable-programmer-calls-911","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.managerjs.com\/blog\/2015\/05\/an-irritable-programmer-calls-911\/","title":{"rendered":"An Irritable Programmer Calls 911"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Operator:<\/b> Please state the nature of your emergency.<\/p>\n

Programmer:<\/b> I need immediate assistance.<\/span><\/p>\n

Operator:<\/b> Are you injured?<\/span><\/p>\n

Programmer:<\/b> Look lady, I don’t want to turn this into a\u00a0status<\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/i>meeting.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Status is Not\u00a0Stupid<\/h2>\n

I’ve noticed people saying the word “status” with scorn: “Now, instead of getting work done we’re just reporting on status<\/i><\/b>.”<\/span><\/p>\n

In fact, I’ve heard people use the s-word to complain about stand-up meetings that had team mates reporting to each other on what they got done and what they were going to work on.<\/span><\/p>\n

Teamwork: It’s Better Together<\/h2>\n

I’ve particularly noticed this sort of dislike on teams that are really more like bundles of developers: I work on my thing, you work on yours, and each has nothing to do with the other.<\/span><\/p>\n

However you describe it, the daily stand-up (or scrum) meeting is for the team to understand where they are, see what needs working on, and make a plan for the next day of work.<\/span><\/p>\n

I’ve found that a team really shines when teammates work on related things together rather than independent things apart.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you find yourself dreading stand-up then maybe your team is in a rut. In late 2011 I felt like my team’s stand-up had lost their edge.<\/p>\n

It seemed that people felt an obligation to talk for a certain amount of time just to justify what they did yesterday. I also felt like we were spending time in the meeting doing bookkeeping that could have been done before hand.<\/span><\/p>\n

I was the scrum master at the time so I wrote up this guide to shake things up for a few days.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stand-up For Today<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

Don’t Do This:<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. What I did yesterday.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. What I’m doing today.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. How I am blocked<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Do Do This<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n
      \n
    1. What did I do or learn that will probably affect others?<\/span><\/li>\n
    2. What will I do that affects others?<\/span><\/li>\n
    3. What is impeding me?<\/span><\/li>\n
    4. How can I help others today?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Assumptions That Make This OK<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n