Fairytale and Fantasy

Agile 2008 – Day 1

Pascal and I pair-present a session on improving personal effectiveness called Mirror, Mirror on the Wall… Why Me?The session begins with an Agile re-telling of the fairytale favourite Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Think storytime à la Tarantino for adults. We got a round of applause for the storytelling and many participants left the session with new insights about themselves.

Dramatis Personae

  • Snow White – team player, works hard, naive
  • Evil Queen – gets things done, power-hungry, manipulative
  • Hunter – disciplined, practical, mercenary
  • Doc – knowledgeable, solution-focussed, arrogant
  • Bashful – sensitive to others’ needs, quiet, dislikes conflict
  • Sleepy – entertaining, easily distracted, difficult to motivate
  • Sneezy – friendly, creatively efficient, allergic to work
  • Happy – positive, motivated, can ignore problems
  • Dopey – enthusiastic, lacks discipline, lacks attention to detail
  • Grumpy – analytical, critical, poor communicator

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves Game – Part 1

Now we begin our journey of self-discovery through a cycle of personal judgment, reflection, introspection and action. Let’s take Snow White as an example.

  1. Personal judgment: Does Snow White remind you on anyone? Give examples of why you think they remind you of Snow White.
  2. Reflection and introspection – ‘Looking into the Mirror’: Why do you think what you think about that person? What does what you think about them say about you?
  3. Action: What are some actions you can take to improve your understanding of that person? What’s the smallest thing you can do to improve your relationship with them? Pick one action and do it.

Agile Coach’s #1 Secret to Great Teamwork

We cannot change others. We can only change ourselves.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves Game – Part 2

We assemble a fairytale project team. Everyone dreads drawing the Evil Queen card because although the Evil Queen gets things done, she’s also power hungry and manipulative. As in real life, we have to find ways to best leverage the skills, experience and interests of every member of our team. Agile is about facing challenges head on and fostering human potential.

Agile Coach’s #2 Secret to Great Teamwork

Everyone has value.

Go, Go, Gameplay

You can play the game for free. All Agile Fairytale materials will be available online soon under the Creative Commons licence. Why not define your own happy ending today?

Leave a Reply