Tuesday, July 21, 2015

There Is No "I" in Team... or Is There?

The ‘I’ in team is only in the A-hole.


Have one on your team?


Symptoms of the A-hole

  • Concerned with only their tasks
  • Considers their work ‘done’ for a story when their task is complete
  • Moves to new stories of their choice
  • Feels some tasks to be beneath them


Who is the A-Hole? Look in the mirror. Most of us are at some time or another.


  • Feeling a deadline, you push “your stuff” into the build and it breaks.
  • Once your stickie is done, you pronounce yourself ‘done’ and move on the next story
  • You don’t see anything on the board to do so you:
    1. Pull in a story of your choice
    2. Work on things “not on the storyboard”
How to avoid being the A-Hole


  • Take the time to ensure your piece WORKS. It builds. The tests run successfully. Then check in your update.
  • Your piece works. Is the rest of the story done? Work with your story-mates to ensure the story completes.
  • Not sure where to get started on a story? Ask your story-mates. Everyone working in sync makes the story complete faster with better results.
  • Realize your priority is to the board and every team member owns every stickie. Consult with your team about where you should go next.


Nobody likes the A-Hole. No one should be one either!

- Written by Kayla Hahn

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