7 Powerful Questions to Ask Yourself If You Are a Scrum Master

7 Powerful Questions to Ask Yourself If You Are a Scrum Master

7 Powerful Questions to Ask Yourself If You Are a Scrum Master

“The unexamined life is not worth living” — Socrates.

This quote rings especially true for Scrum Masters, who must continuously engage in self-introspection to remain relevant and effective. Regular self-reflection helps Scrum Masters assess their own performance, identify areas for improvement and make necessary adjustments to serve their teams and organisations better.

Am I Solving the Same Problems?

A lot of us started as scrum masters by either leading our own team or by taking a beginner's scrum master certification course.

Do I Understand the Why?

Are we blindly copying practices and techniques we learn in the courses, hear from our colleagues or read on social media with only a rudimentary mechanical understanding?

Experience teaches nothing. In fact there is no experience to record without theory… Without theory there is no learning… And that is their downfall. People copy examples and then they wonder what is the trouble. They look at examples and without theory they learn nothing.

Unless you spend time understanding why things are the way they are, how will you know when and how to adapt the practices to the context? The Guidebooks become like religious manuals with no room for adaptation or debate, and that is not how it should be.

Do I Continue to Gain Skills?

Have you just been a social media butterfly, with most learning coming from social media posts and reels? Have you taken the time to do structured learning using books and courses? Structured learning to build skills you don't have takes time and effort.

What is My Unique Contribution?

This one is significant because it has two questions inside one —

What_is_My_Unique_Contribution.jpeg

What Do I Do Next?

If you are a scrum master in a large enterprise, you might often face challenges regarding career growth. The corporate environment can be rigid, with limited opportunities for advancement.

How is My Network?

Having a support system of peers and mentors is essential for personal and professional growth. As a scrum master, they help you avoid the echo chambers of social media, make sense of the diverse and often confusing viewpoints (like the scrum vs agile debate), challenge your views, and inspire you to be your best. As the saying goes,

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

A mentor, in particular, probably a more seasoned scrum master, an agile coach or even a delivery leader, can provide guidance, feedback, and a fresh perspective on several aspects. They can be a sounding board for your ideas and help you navigate the challenges of current assignments and even your career.

How Do I Feel?

Are you charged up on a Monday morning to go to work and change the world? Maybe not change the world, but at least get into the office (or the zoom call) with a smile.

Motivation is what gets you started, habit is what keeps you going.

Get into a habit of staying motivated and getting things done!

The Wrap

You may find some of these questions difficult or even discomforting. Honest answers to those might provide you with an objective mirror to your strengths and areas of improvement.

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Hrishikesh Karekar

Agile Expert

Hrishikesh is a Director, Financial Services BU at Capgemini. He has 19+ years of experience in IT software industry playing high responsibility roles as Agile Transformation Lead, Agile Coach, Program Manager, Delivery Manager, Technical Project Manager, Technical Lead & Software Engineer. Hrishikesh is passionate about building high performing teams, taking individuals and teams on a journey of excellence and satisfaction. His vision of Agile is not just about implementing effective, efficient and lean processes, but transforming people’s mindsets – to deliver better ROI and real business benefits. Hrishikesh holds a Bachelor of Engineering, Production Engineering from VJTI, University of Mumbai.

   
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