Lions who have no teeth

… the boy who cried wolf, the emperor’s new clothes, or the honest woodman - what do all of these have in common? They all deal with the axiom of honesty, perception, and misdirection.

When thinking about the business side of software I tend to think about the lions without teeth; the things that are claimed as the highest importance from the loudest people.

So as developers how do we distill the true signal in all of the noise? How do we separate the lions with teeth who we should be paying attention to from the ones without the teeth that we should be able to ignore? Have a point. In a scrum shop, this is generally set by the product owner, but we as devs are responsible for helping our groups stick to it when the pressure rises.

Impossible you say? You’re thinking, “there is no way we could all stand behind one point, the business would implode.” Really? So does that mean personal budgets don’t work, or that companies like 37signals really don’t function?

When lions bite they will do everything not to let go, because they are hungry. They know that letting go = empty belly or in the business mind => my group’s priority = my passion; those are the real lions.

What about the others? That’s where histrionics enters into the equation; where deception takes over and reality steps out. Their business mind => my priority = my passion. Stay clear of them, don’t have anything to do with them - they tend to distort, disillusion, and distract from the “goal.”

run with this: get a point for what you’re doing, write it down where it’s in your face, get behind it, do it, stay away from anyone who want’s to usurp it.