Lisa Sieverts

Currently reading: The Fraud by Zadie Smith 📚

Finished reading: On Beauty by Zadie Smith 📚Fun, thought-provoking novel by a present-day master.

Finished reading: In the Matter of Color by A. Leon Higginbotham 📚 Excellent though dense non-fiction about Colonial laws related to slavery. Our country has a foundation of sand, and evil sand at that.

Finished reading: In the Shadow of the Dam by Elizabeth M. Sharpe 📚Excellent non-fiction about the evils of capitalism back in the 19th century, 150 people died when a poorly built dam gave way.

Finished reading: Enlightenment by Sarah Perry 📚excellent novel set in Essex England. Love and loss, well told. Morris dancing plays a pivotal role at one point.

Currently reading: The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett 📚

Trying to build a new habit: 15 minutes of fiddle practice in the morning after I get to my office but before I begin working. There’s no one else in the building at that time so my caterwauling is heard only by me. #buddingmusicianat65

Currently reading: Recovering Abundance: Twelve Practices for Small-Town Leaders by Andy Stanton-Henry 📚

Currently reading: Lifehouse: Taking Care of Ourselves in a World on Fire by Adam Greenfield 📚

Currently reading: In the Matter of Color by A. Leon Higginbotham 📚

Oops, I set multiple devices to update to iOS 18.0.1, they are all slow at the download. Probably should have done one at a time LOL.

How are your projects going? Are the goals clear? Is the day-to-day work proceeding well?

One of the most rewarding—and challenging—aspects of being a project manager is the need to think at two levels at all times. I call this “The Micro and The Macro.”

🐘 The Macro

You carry the vision for the project. You must “see” the end product and share that vision with the team and the stakeholders. Without a clear goal, the team can’t build the right product and the stakeholders may struggle to understand or support the work.

🐝 The Micro

And you need an eye for the details.

While you don’t need to be a subject matter expert, you must be able to ask the right questions at the right time. This helps your team solve problems and determine the best course of action.

Last but not least, you need a sixth sense for risks. What could go wrong, or what could go exceptionally well, when we make a decision?

🚀 The Benefits

When you develop the skill of seeing both the Macro and the Micro, you will enable your teams to do fantastic work. Your projects will make steady, sustainable progress toward those big objectives.

✅ NEXT STEP When you want help balancing the Micro and the Macro in your projects, reach out to me @agilelisa. Let’s set up a Discovery Call to explore how I can help you achieve your project goals.

Currently reading: On Beauty by Zadie Smith 📚

Currently reading: Lifehouse by Adam Greenfield 📚

Currently reading: Enlightenment by Sarah Perry 📚

Finished reading: Penric’s Demon by Lois McMaster Bujold 📚Very fun novella, possession by demons but that’s a good thing.

Visiting Northeast Pennsylvania

Currently reading: The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd 📚

Heading off to my nephew’s wedding, first family gathering in a decade! I’m thrilled about my new niece-in-law.

？Have you heard about Story Mapping? It’s a great tool for projects.

When a team creates a Story Map, they gain a visual tool that guides their work and keeps them aligned with the project’s key objectives.

Story Mapping is useful for Agile projects, where typically the team plans for only a few weeks at a time.

🧭 The Map helps maintain focus on the big picture and overarching goals, preventing the project from getting lost in the minutiae of everyday work.

Last week, I had the opportunity to collaborate with a start-up company to create their first Story Map.

In just two hours, we outlined the essential components of their project.

🤼 The most rewarding aspect was the rich conversation that unfolded. By consistently asking questions about how their application would function, I encouraged the team to think deeply about user experience.

These talented developers experienced a breakthrough in understanding their own application, which will guide both major and minor decisions over the coming months.

They’re currently grappling with a critical question: “What’s the most impactful yet minimal feature set we can present to our users?”

Thanks to the Story Map, they now have that answer.

Finished reading: Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates 📚Short YA novel, written decades ago, about an enslaved person who bought his way out and founded a lecture series in NH. The book is severely dated in many, many ways.

Finished reading: An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon 📚I didn’t love it, found it tedious in spots. Interesting apocalyptic space fiction.

🎵 Absolutely loving this new album by Jake Blount, available on Bandcamp with all proceeds going to the performers today (Bandcamp Friday). Americana Apocolypse Music, perfectly done. https://jakeblountmusic.bandcamp.com/album/symbiont

Finished reading: Cunning Folk by Tabitha Stanmore 📚Interesting non-fiction about the “early modern” period, which I learned is sort of 1300-1650, and how often magic was a part of everyday life.

Finished reading: Master Slave Husband Wife by Ilyon Woo 📚Excellent non-fiction about two enslaved people who successfully escaped, and how much America and the Constitution stood in their way. I learned a lot.