Get the Story Before you Write the Story - Journalistic Skills for Agile Professionals - talk by Sue Johnston and Andrew Annett at Agile And Beyond, Dearborn, MI, April 30, 2015

1. Get the Story
Before you Write the Story
Reporters’ Tips for Software Professionals
Dearborn MI – April 30, 2015
Andrew Annett Sue Johnston

2. FIT
FOR PURPOSE

3. What’s going on here?
“Here’s what we need to build.” “Here’s something to check out.”
SOFTWARE PERSON REPORTER

4. Today’s Story
Why
stories?
Reporter
techniques
Exercise
Use in
your world

5. Please hold your questions
until you have one

9. User Story Formula
• As a ___________________
• I want to _______________
• So that _________________
WHO
WHAT
WHY
People
Action
Expected outcome

10. User Story Formula 2.0 (Job Story)
• When _________________
• I want to _______________
• So that ________________
WHAT
WHAT
WHY
Circumstances
Motivation
Expected outcome

11. STORYSTORY

12. Curiosity is more useful than knowledge when you’re after a story!

13. Reporter Story Formula
• WHO?
• WHAT?
• WHEN?
• WHERE?
• WHY?
• Who are you?
• What do you want?
• What are you going to do
about it?
As a
I want to
So that

14. We’ve evolved
to share
information
through stories
Image: Lascaux Caves, France

15. Our brains
love a story!
Illustration: Nadir Balan

16. Why should we
care about stories?

17. What’s
the
story
here?

18. A story has a spine

19. Once upon a
time . . . And ever since
then . . .
CURRENT REALITY BETTER FUTURE
The Spine of a Story

20. Everyday Life
Everyday Life is
Changed
CURRENT REALITY BETTER FUTURE
The Hero’s Journey

22. Group exercise
• You’ll have 8 minutes.
• Create a brief story that you imagine might have
led to the development of one of the products on
the cards.
• Then we’ll share the stories.

23. A dream come true
Once upon a time, a man was cursed (he knew not how or by whom) to suffer
restless nights of tossing and turning on the world's most uncomfortable bed.
Morning after morning he awoke stiff and bleary-eyed and yawned his way
through the tiresome days.
Many approached him with promises of a better night's sleep, but alas! Their
promises were as empty as his wallet after forking over his hard-earned silver for
"designer" mattresses that were as lumpy and unforgiving as a sack full of peas.
He had almost given up hope of ever having a good night's sleep. Until one day,
he heard from a mysterious stranger about a merchant whose magical mattresses
could break even the most powerful of sleeping curses. And he wouldn't even have
to sign away his first-born child to purchase it!
The man was skeptical: who could break a powerful curse for such a reasonable price? Still, the merchant's offer was too good to refuse (a 100-day trial
with full refund and free shipping!?), so he tried this special curse-breaking mattress, which the merchant had named "Casper." The man could tell that
Casper was special the moment it arrived at his door. Its look, its feel - everything about it was so unlike any other mattress he had ever seen. Was it too
much to hope that it could break his curse?
He lay down on it with trepidation. He had been made false promises before. But Casper embraced him gently, and he drifted off to sleep. That night,
the man slept soundly. He dreamed dreams he had never dreamed before. And the next morning, he awoke more refreshed and invigorated than he could
ever recall in his entire life. Casper had lifted his curse! This Casper was indeed a work of marvelous craftsmanship and unparalleled value. The man could
not imagine having more wisely spent his silver. His restless nights were a thing of the past, and he lived happily ever after.

24. Who should I talk with?
• Anyone involved
• People impacted
• Ask, “Who else should I talk with?”
Sometimes, there is no “oracle”

25. Navigate through CURIOSITY

26. Marcus Raetz – Yes or No
Things are
not always
what they
seem

28. How do I get people to talk with me?
• “If you don’t tell your story, someone else will.”
• “You’re affected. You’ll know what a good outcome will be for you.”
• “This story/product will be better with your perspective.”
• Relationships

29. What should I ask them?
• Navigate through curiosity
• Be like a child
• Not the time to show off your knowledge
• Rather than features, focus on value – relate to behaviour
• Focus on helping those who use the products
Better stories create better users!

30. Different voices
Purpose
Motivations
Aspirations
Context
Emotion

31. FIT
FOR PURPOSE

32. Tiny Habits
• Pick one idea to start with
• Try it for a week
• Watch what happens
Adapt
Deliver
Inspect

33. Sue Johnston
sue@itsunderstood.com
@itsunderstood
Andrew Annett
Andrew@leanintuit.com
@akannett

34. PLEASE NOTE
SLIDES ≠ PRESENTATION
• These slides are designed to be viewed in conjunction with a
human being talking and interacting with you.
• They may not make much sense to you if you were not at the
live session.

35. Get the Story Before You Write the Story
Reporters’ Tips for Software Professionals
http://itsunderstood.com Sue Johnston sue@itsunderstood.com @itsunderstood
The Big Point If we make “user stories” resemble real stories about people using
our products, we will create better products. (And smarter users!)
The brain likes a story Our brains make sense of information when we hear it as a story.
Stories create emotional experiences that are active and memorable.
A good story has a spine It’s easier to make sense of information that’s connected through a
unifying theme that provides context.
Context is key Facts become meaningful and memorable in the context of a story.

36. Traditional Reporter’s Framework:
Who? What? When? Where? Why?
Amended Reporter’s Framework:
 Who are you?
 What do you want?
 What are you going to do about it?
User Story Framework:
 As a [ Who? / People ]
 I want to [ Do what? / Action ]
 So that [ Why? / Expected Outcome ]
Story Spine:
 Once upon a time . . .
 Every day . . .
 But one day . . .
 Because of that . . .
 And because of that . . .
 And because of that . . .
 Until finally . . .
 And ever since then . . .
Hero’s Journey:
 Normal life
 Call to adventure
 Meet sidekicks + mentors
 Bad things happen
 Worse things happen
 Big ordeal where hero overcomes bad things
 Returns with treasure
 Normal life, but better
How well do these frameworks provide meaningful information and context we can use
to create quality products people will buy and use - that are fit for purpose?
http://itsunderstood.com
Which tips will you try? When? With whom?
Ask about value for those using it, more than features.
Ask about the purpose of things. Is it fit for purpose?
Find alternatives to “Why?” and “Why not?”
Navigate via curiosity.
Experiment with the story frameworks.
User Story Framework 2.0:
 When [ When? / Situation ]
 I want to [ Do What? / Motivation ]
 So that [ Why? / Expected Outcome ]