At some occasions we stop to look back. It happens rather irregularly in my life, although regularly in Scrum. We see the trail we left behind. We notice landmarks, missed chances, forgotten events, achievements. Small or big. We cherish that we cannot undo it. And we look ahead of us, and think of the paths we might create moving forward understanding that our current actions continually determine our future.
Looking back, two fairly recent, symmetric landmarks stand out on my trail of Scrum created since 2003:
- Five years ago I attended a PSM class in Zürich, Switzerland, aspiring to become a Professional Scrum Trainer with Scrum.org, which I did become.
- Two and a half years ago I left consulting and moved to that home of Scrum, Scrum.org, to shepherd Professional Scrum and be its face in Europe.
Looking back, I am humbled by the opportunities to travel, to speak, to think, to write, to publish a book, to collaborate with people across the globe. I thank anyone who crossed my path, regardless how they chose to interfere with me.
Just for a split second, I pride myself for having gone my ways, having made my choices. In that split second I see some impact on people, on individuals.
Looking forward, I shiver and doubt takes over again. I embrace the solitude that is often my companion and look forward to the future that, to date, is unwritten. There are many unknown futures that can unfold. In a short flash I realize that there are probably much more options than I know of. There are more paths than I can possibly identify.
Although the future will be nothing like the past, it’s fair to assume that my journey ahead will keep including Scrum. The exact directions however…
We can become what we don’t know we want to be.
