I have always loved to learn new things, not only new skills, but theories and concepts; anything that will boost my curiosity and keep me alert and up to date. Due to this love for learning, I have done hundreds of courses, both online and offline. I have studied a vast variety of things, from marine biology to maths and finance, to Agile Coaching.
Today I will be sharing my experience undergoing the 12-week incubator course that is delivered by Source Agility and facilitated by Niall McShane and Daniel Hill.
1. Agile frameworks can be applied at home
Even though this course thought me a lot about agile frameworks, practice and methodologies, the most important lessons it gave me, are actually tools to have better interactions, communications and understandings of team and individual dynamics. This profoundly impacted my professional and personal life.
One of the most important lessons I learned was a concept that defined the types of conversations you are having with others. Although I found it useful in my interactions at work, I found it life-changing at home with my partner and with close friends.
I started noticing that there are circumstances where someone just wants to "download", they just want to be heard and share an idea, concept or problem they might have. In these circumstances asking lots of questions or trying to solve the problem is not going to sit well with the person trying to "download". At this point conflict may arise. Learning to identify the type of conversation my partner or friends are wanting to have with me, has minimized the amount of conflict that arises, and it has brought much more awareness to the interactions I have with others, making them more meaningful and conscious.
2. Self-awareness is part of your professional development
Another concept that was reinforced with this course was the one of self-awareness and equanimity. During my recent trip to India, I completed a Vipassana course, where you sit in silence and meditation for 10 days. In this course you are thought a specific meditation technique that seeks to train your mind to maintain bodily awareness and balance during your "woken" life. This course changed my life and has continuously changed me for the better through meditation.
This awareness and clarity are not only beneficial in our personal lives, but our professional life as well. In the course Niall and Dan emphasize the importance of self-understanding, which we applied by taking a personality test, self-awareness and mindfulness. They include mindful practices as part of the course and provide real life examples of how to apply this concept in professional settings. I personally found this component of the course crucial, and it is what drove me to change careers from marketing and business consulting to agile coaching. These concepts show the alignment of values and awareness that is required to be a good agile coach, and these are all perfectly aligned with the type of person I strive to be.
3. The learning is done by practicing (even if it's on yourself)
The last thing that made this course so exciting was the number and variety of frameworks and tools it provides. As a new agile coach this was extremely useful and interesting for me but applying it and practicing with other students was the absolute best part. It was so much easier to remember and apply the frameworks that we had practiced with, than the ones that we just saw or studied.
Applying them and remembering the conversations with fellow students made them stick more firmly in my memory, and I must admit, that I have used many of them in my professional and personal life. The GROW model is one of my absolute favourites and now, I tend to coach myself using this tool when I am struggling to make a decision.
Final words
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Obtaining two IC Agile certifications at the end of the 12 weeks was incredibly satisfying, but the real benefit is all the knowledge I acquired, the incredible people I met and the “aha” moments I experienced. I have always believed that investing in oneself is the key to one’s growth, and this course is testament to that as I believe it gives you the tools and knowledge to be a better person, and professional.
