My quietly loud declaration
(Originally published in May 2017)
I view myself as a quiet person. That doesn’t mean I’m always quiet or even shy. It means I’m generally an introvert who sometimes needs time to listen and space to reflect. If I’m not talking it doesn’t mean I’m disengaged though it may do sometimes. I’m quiet — not perfect.
I like smaller gathering compared to large groups and conferences where it’s easy to get lost in the crowd. I like a community vibe within an organisation or group and not a ‘we must all be the same’ corporate culture. I like observing situations and watching out for other keen observers though that doesn’t mean I don’t have a responsibility to speak out when something feels wrong.
The statements above aren’t on a continuum and this isn’t some pseudo-psych personality type thing. It’s ‘my declaration’ as it reflects the different sides of me. Though I tend to land on the right-hand side I have many left-hand side days when I turn the music up loud and enjoy sharing my experiences and ideas with lots of people.
My career has focused on business analysis and product management within digital services — so what has ‘my quietness’ got to do with that? Why is this even a bit important? The agile manifesto states,
‘Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done’.
I want to help create that positive environment. To help ensure people get the support they need — including those who have right-hand side days. I’ve listed the actions which have worked for me.
Provide opportunity. Provide silence.
People can find they have developed a role or voice within a familiar group which is hard to change. If you know that people often dominate regular meetings and the ‘quiet ones’ stay quiet — change the meeting make-up or split it up. Ask people to sit in different places. You may find that the right-hand side people flip to the left.
Provide people with the opportunity to say something through speech or writing/drawing and breaking into smaller groups. The often-used ‘now please post-it your ideas’ isn’t useful just to capture everyone’s comments it can also provide silence for those who want to mull over things before they start sharing.
Whilst open work spaces can help bring down silos, too often they result in everyone putting on headphones in attempt to drown out distractions and conversations still don’t happen. Think about providing areas where people can go if they need silence to think so that any important noisy side of desk gatherings can continue (or vice versa).
Provide time. Provide space.
Provide everyone with an opportunity to say something early in a meeting and don’t let the early voices fully set the theme.
Not everyone wants to react immediately. If you’re running a regular session (say a retrospective) with people who won’t know what to expect — let them know in advance the kinds of questions which will be asked so they can reflect beforehand.
Listen out for the questions. Rather than directly challenging a theme as it’s developing in a meeting, someone may ask a question instead. It may just be the questioner checking their own understanding. Or maybe the questioner wants to flag that something key has been missed amid the group’s enthusiasm. Support questioners by providing opportunity for the group to pause and reflect on what is being asked.
And finally.
Don’t assume quietness means meekness or mellowness.
I can be as tough and uncompromising as those who cling firmly to the left-hand side — it’s just that I chose to fight my battles quietly and with care.
(With credit to the Quiet Revolution for some of the ideas and the Agile Manifesto for the structure for my declaration).