Lemonade Stand Observations

We have all heard that 'Agile' is simple enough to understand, and that it even makes-sense (to most). So why do organisations still struggle with being agile? 

I had posed that, "if people felt psychologically safe at work, the shift to being agile would be less of a struggle?" But that was last night. By 10.30 this morning I had changed my mind.

While I write this, my kids and their neighbours are setting up a Lemonade Stand on the street (the berm). 

I watch the kids briefly. They are ready with bowl, a jug, a knife, a small table, and lemons they have gleaned from the lemon tree. "So cute", I think to myself and get back to writing.

"Tsk, tsk... hello? Social distancing", I hear you say? "We're at Lockdown 3 in Auckland." I am also aware of the irony that the kids will all be back at school tomorrow, after all. Interesting times?!

I get back to writing and in a bit, my youngest comes in and asks for a lemon squeezer. And in another little while, the older comes in and asks for cups. It doesn't take me long to realise that I have the opportunity to observe agile-in-practice. I grab my phone and wonder outside.

When I get outside, there's a graveyard of discarded lemon halves on the grassy berm. One kid is busy squeezing away, another stirring, and yet another is getting the signage ready. 

Straight up, I get asked, "do you want to try some once we're done?" And all I think of was, "did you guys even wash your hands?" 

The kid stirring the jug says, "we need more sugar" and someone rushes off to get more. Another pipes in, "we've already got someone who will buy it." 

I asked, "Who?" 

"The man picking up the old freezer", was the reply (and I'm like ... ok?!)

I take a picture of their signage and walk back into the house to continue my blog.

While I'm typing away, one of my kids comes in again, this time to ask his father if he wants to buy some lemonade. His father agreed, handed over his dollar, grabbed a cup, and I won't not repeat what he said here. I just laughed.

I venture outside again (a little later). This time I'm surprised to see other parents and kids congregating and chatting away (and yes mostly keeping their social distance), obviously amused by the goings-on. 

I joined in momentarily with the chatter and observed a more refined lemonade stand operation. They now have a money box (to collect money), rubbish bin for discarded lemons skins (one of the parent's must have said something), a tea towel, wet wipes, and the signage had move from the table to a bicycle (ready for any team member to ride around the street, to advertise their lemonade stand). 

Later still, the lemonade stand evolved into a mobile door-to-door service. Also, customers now needed to provide their own cups, which they seemed happy to do so. Two kids pulled the trolley and poured lemonade, also collecting the money. Four kids racing ahead (in pairs), knocking on doors in search of potential customers (they also do re-fill/ re-stock).

It is now 2.30pm. My kids have finally come back for lunch. And I casually question them -

Me: Did many people buy your lemonade?

Kids: Some people did and some people didn't. 

"Some people didn't know how much it was?!"

"They thought it was fifty cents but that was our old price"

"Our other batch was much better, than the first"

Me: How much have you made, so far?

Youngest: $37. I've got $5. Here Mummy, you can have it? (And I'm thinking, I've taught him well). 

Me: Hang on, shouldn't you have gotten $6? There were six of you right? 

He understood my line of questioning and gave me a little (bashful) smile. I assured him it was alright. 

I am well impressed and despite having no formal knowledge of Agile, Lean, or Scrum,  I saw examples of

• build-measure-learn (lean practice) 
• inspect and adapt (scrum practice) 
• motivated self organising team (agile team)

There was no project manager, product manager, no scrum master or agile coach, no designer ... you see where I am going with this.  Just a self-organising-team with an idea - to make and sell lemonade. They made do with what they had and what they knew at the time. The rest they learned along the way. They had the determination and enthusiasm to see it through. And more importantly they had fun in the process. This is what teachers would (nowadays) term as, Learning-Through-Play. I call it, Agile-In-Practice.