I am here to tell you to just stop.
Stop mistaking vague meetings for progress
— start solving real problems together.
Stop stockpiling backlogs you will never build
— bring clarity to what matters now.
Stop wasting time on guesswork estimations
— work in small pieces and see real progress.
Stop haggling over salaries
— define performance clearly and pay accordingly.
Stop on Fridays
— reset, refocus, and start fresh on Monday.
This is the brutalist manifesto for managing development. It calls for an end to the theater surrounding how we work. The theater of new titles without new mandate, the theater of a calendar packed with meetings, and the theater of sprints that are just more of the last sprint.
Because reality is not impressed by your theatrics. But, it will budge if you look it in the eye, find the cracks, and push there.
The first reality you need to face is that you are human. And so are the people working for you.
You see only a sliver of the reality you are trying to change, and you can never share more than a fraction of the vision you hold. Gather a diverse team around you, though, and together you will see a clear enough picture. Build enough trust among yourselves and you will be able to stay aligned and drive your change.
If this sounds impossible under the pace and pressure you face, remember that SWAT-teams lead with trust and values, and your reality is no messier than theirs.
Stop pretending you see the whole picture. Stop pretending control is something you can hold. Start build a team with a shared goal. A team you trust to make independent decisions as they happen, who will share their honest observations with you.
Sound scary? I was scared too, until I did it and it worked. Like and subscribe for the rest of the series where I break down each point to actionable steps.
Less theater. More progress.