How choosing a Corgi as my first dog has helped my career as a scrum master
Choosing the breed
As a person who always had cats, choosing my first dog was going to be a thoughtful process. I knew going into this, I would want to choose a dog that encouraged my growth — not one that fit my lifestyle.
If I’m being honest, an English Bulldog emulated my prior lifestyle and energy levels. I didn’t care to move much. I was happy just being complacent and lazy with my personal health. They are such sweet and happy dogs. I loved visiting my husband’s family bulldogs and hanging out with them. They were excited to meet you, friendly, loyal, and my favorite part — low maintenance! They don’t need much physical activity to be tired.
I didn’t want a Bulldog though. I just appreciate how similar in personality that breed is to my prior lifestyle. My favorite dogs were medium to larger size dogs, but living in an apartment, I had to choose a dog who could be okay with that style of living without a backyard.
When it came to the choice of dog I wanted, I knew that my goals were to go back to the lifestyle and energy I had just over 7 years ago.
I used to be a runner, and I climbed mountains and hiked a lot. I used to thrive on green juice and healthy living. All those things that were part of me, are still part of me on the inside. The passion for those activities and lifestyle never stopped even though I gained weight.
I knew a dog with high energy would be a challenge, but I was at a point in my life where I needed that.
I was debating between a Corgi and a Husky — my two dream dogs. In fact, I’ve always been drawn to dogs in the working/herding category. However, a Husky is not suitable for a small apartment living. I feel it wouldn’t be fair to own a big dog without enough space for them to run around, and I don’t live an active lifestyle yet to be walking 3 - 5 miles with them a day to burn off their energy, especially with a big dog like a Husky.
I knew I had to choose a Corgi as my first dog to own at 32 years old. Not only did I love how funny and sweet they were, they could happily live in an apartment setting with enough mental and physical activity.
Dog Ownership meets the Scrum Framework
Entering the world of dog ownership was an exciting but nervous experience for me, especially since I would be growing and challenging myself every step of the way.
Like anything I do in life, I had to plan and be prepared ahead of time. I did my research into the breed, and knew that having a Corgi alongside me would not only push me to be a better person physically, but it would help me in more ways than one.
One of the ways having a Corgi has helped me has been through analyzing her behavior through a scrum master lens. While dogs aren’t known as the most “agile” of animals, they definitely can display a lot of the scrum values.
Corgi’s are focused, intelligent, determined, strong-willed, and don’t let anything get in the way of their goals. They work very well with others, and even work well on their own. They even learn from their mistakes and find new ways to solve problems. The same drive that a Corgi has are traits that make a scrum master (like myself) successful.
When I got my first Corgi, Ellie — I could already tell her personality type from just 8 Weeks Old. She was an Alpha Female. She was extremely intelligent, sweet, but also strong willed when it came to getting what she wanted.
She was extremely energetic, and refused to eat food unless it was in a puzzle toy that she could figure out. She was always looking for a job to do as well, always ready to be of service (servant leadership) and wanted to make sure our house was kept in order and in line.
My Corgi as a Scrum Master
I’ve spent time wondering how Ellie would be as a Scrum Master if she could speak and be human. Analyzing her personality over the past few months, I thought about all the things she would be doing if she had a team of her own.
If Ellie was a Scrum Master, she would be on top of product owners everyday to make sure that Product Backlog was always ready to go, prioritized, and organized.
She would make sure the team doesn’t lose sight of the sprint goals.
She’d herd everyone in a group to make sure they’d work together to get the job done.
As a watch dog, she would also protect the team by making sure “intruders” or outside stakeholders would leave the team alone when they are in the middle of a sprint. She would have no problem barking telling outsiders to get away from the progress her team is making.
She would run into challenges head on and figure out ways to solve problems as she sees them.
Roadblocks — what’s a roadblock except a way to troubleshoot possible solutions? That’s what she would say if she could talk, I know it.
She would ultimately protect the team with everything she had, making sure no one was ever left behind.
She lives on order, structure, and making sure the pack was doing what they were supposed to be doing.
Scrum Master Advice from a Corgi
While raising Ellie, she has shined a light on all the skills I try to display as a scrum master. She acts as my daily reminder on how to properly herd a team to success all with persistence, dedication, and a sense of flexibility.
The famous saying is that being a scrum master is like herding cats — and what better way to herd than learning from a dog who knows how to do it instinctively.
As a scrum master, I didn’t think having a dog like Ellie would impact my career in such a positive way, but it has.
I have come up with 11 items that Ellie has reminded me on a daily basis on how to continue being a good scrum master for my team.
1. Be assertive
Ellie has taught me to be more assertive. She is the most assertive dog I’ve ever met. She’s not afraid of much these days, and she moves forward with confidence whenever she meets new people.
Owning a dog has fortunately, and unfortunately (I’m an introvert owning a Corgi) taken me out of my shell to force me to socialize more — and that in and of itself requires a certain degree of assertiveness and confidence that I’ve had to build up.
Raising Ellie as a puppy, I’ve had to be assertive to make sure I could advocate for her since she didn’t have a voice. I had to make sure the people she met were friendly and had good intention. If she didn’t want to say hello to someone I had to stand up for her and let people know she wasn’t feeling like it on that day. Going through the process of socialization with a puppy growing up has been essential in building my confidence and assertiveness because as my dog, she needs to feel protected and safe.
2. Protect your team
Ellie has taught me it’s absolutely crucial to protect your team (pack). Dogs are pack animals. When you’re a scrum master, the team is like your pack.
When Ellie is in daycare, I watch how she acts around the other dogs. She observes from a far, but herds when needs to. When it comes to going inside the doors to the indoor or outdoor sections, I’ve watched her herd the group to where they need to go, and she will be the last one out making sure everyone gets the chance to be out first and she will follow behind almost protecting her pack.
I’ve watched these qualities in her grow and blossom in a beautiful way. She doesn’t try to dominate the situation, she gently guides the dogs she’s around. Observing her behavior has shown me that the team always comes first and the leader stays behind to make sure everyone is being cared for.
It is important to protect the team and make sure they feel safe with me as a scrum master.
3. Herding the group is helpful to stay on track
As a scrum master, I don’t “herd” necessarily. I’m a facilitator, and a servant leader for my team. However, in a scrum environment, it’s important the team understands the goals for each sprint. Bringing everyone together to a common understanding would be what Ellie would do if she could talk instead of herd by barking or nipping.
Ellie has taught me sometimes you might need to run around in circles around your team (herding behavior) to explain things or new ideas to others, especially if there’s new ideas being introduced. The end goal is to ensure everyone is on the same page and understands how to move forward.
Sometimes you have to corral the group together more than once, especially if they lose focus.
4. Stay persistent when it comes to your workload
Ellie has reminded me of the power of persistence. She is the most strong willed dog I’ve ever had the pleasure and displeasure of meeting and knowing (displeasure only because I’ve had to work on her training and obedience when she’s extremely strong willed).
Whenever I challenge Ellie with puzzle feeders, she is dedicated to figuring it out. Sometimes she’s gotten frustrated, but she never gives up. She will keep figuring out the puzzle to get what she wants.
That trait is amazing to see at times (when it’s not related to her training) because of just how intelligent and persistent she is whenever she wants something. She reminds me that I need to stay strong willed in my endeavors, and continue to be persistent when it comes to my goals.
Ellie’s personal motto is: if at first you don’t succeed, there’s no giving up.
5. Respect differences and understand your audience
Ellie is definitely the type of dog that meets you at the energy that you’re bringing. She understands her audience but she also respects differences with people and dogs that she meets.
I was so proud of her watching her with a blind dog. She did a beautiful introduction making sure she smelled the other dog’s nose and let them know she was there. She didn’t come at her with high energy. She intuitively knew what to do. The blind dog was very calm and Ellie went around to smell them and then stepped back to respect their space. When Ellie meets puppies with high energy like her, she smells them and then greets them with that same level of energy.
She has shown me the beauty of working with different kinds of people with different mindsets than your own, in order to understand and respect them for who they are.
She emulates the importance when working with a diverse team that we all respect each other’s differences in order to come together and get work done and part of that is by understanding the audience as well.
Ellie has shown me that the idea of “herding cats” isn’t as difficult as it looks. Sometimes you just need to throw yourself into the mix and be one with them. Understand their concerns, their motivations, and their mindsets. It’s important to respect their independence and their autonomy and make sure everyone feels comfortable.
6. Embrace Challenges
Ellie has shown me that challenges are always more than welcome, and there’s always a solution to rise above.
Whenever there’s a challenge, she just goes for it and moves forward. When she wanted to get to one side of the room, she figured out how to crawl under the baby gate as a puppy. When we gave her puzzle feeders, she worked to figure out how to do it on her own. She even learned how to open the other baby gate with her paw.
There’s no obstacle that she won’t try to figure out. She reminds me to keep embracing challenges that occur, and always realize that there can always be a solution when facing challenges head on.
7. Keep your sense of humor
Corgi’s, like my Ellie, are like having a mini comedian around. They are so much fun and make you laugh with how funny they can be. She reminds me how to not take life so seriously, and be able to keep my sense of humor no matter where I go.
Life is too short, and Ellie has shown me just how much joy this huge personality in a small body can bring. She reminds me to always be myself, and allow others to be themselves as well. It’s good to be able to have a scrum team that can laugh, connect together, and respect each other.
8. Face your fears head-on after you examine your risks
Ellie has shown me that when she is afraid of something, she takes her time to analyze whatever it is that’s causing apprehension to make sure it’s safe.
Once she can establish a sense of comfort and understand what she’s getting into, she’ll go head on and push through “scary things” like vacuums, loud noises, or random people or dogs.
In the world of scrum there can be a lot of unknowns and that can be scary for some. It’s good to understand what you’re getting into, examine the risks, and either move forwards or in another direction if things are uncertain.
9. Think outside the box
Corgi’s are extremely intelligent and find ways to solve problems, especially by thinking outside the box. Ellie has shown me her ways of forward thinking when it comes to figuring out her puzzles that have more than one way to solve them.
It’s easy to get stuck in a routine when you’re doing what’s comfortable, but sometimes the best solution is found straying elsewhere instead of what you (or the team) is always used to doing.
10. Proper communication is everything
Corgi’s are very talkative, but even without using their voice, they know how to communicate in order to let you know what they need.
Ellie has no problem signaling me in order to figure out what she wants. If she could type, I bet she would write me a detailed list of all the things she wants.
Reading body language (for example) in office environments is a good skill to have, but when you are in a remote environment, it’s important to make sure the team can speak up and be transparent.
Clear communication through voice, video, text, or emails is essential for success in scrum in a remote workplace.
I learned that sometimes better to over communicate than to say it vaguely or not say anything at all.
11. Growth doesn’t exist in the comfort zone
Even though raising my first dog was difficult at first, I feel grateful to know that it’s all been worth it. Ellie has forced me out of my comfort zone and pushed me to go above and beyond in my own life personally and with my career path.
Knowing that I was able to work with a completely brand new dog and transform her into such a well behaved and respectful puppy has been a huge source of happiness and pride in myself. I didn’t do it on my own though. She was there to guide me by learning through her on how I can do better. This is how I realize I can always be doing better for my own team.
Agile is all about adapting, inspecting, and transforming. If we kept things the same, there wouldn’t be room for growth. It wouldn’t be agile.
As a scrum master, I encourage positive changes and growth to help the team in the long run. Whenever we have changes that push others outside of their comfort zone, I’m here to make sure we all work together and get on the same page. It’s my job to remind the team that even if it may be uncomfortable at first, we’ll be able to get through it all.
