“Pivot is a change in strategy without a change in vision” — unknown.
On April 17, 2018, we made a key decision: change the name and web address of our Blog site ( referring to another Blog site of ours, the predecessor of this Blog site).
Why?
- The new name makes more sense in portraying what our Blog site is all about: Sharing knowledge and absorbing knowledge; providing enlightenment, guidance, coaching and encouragement; and being a Servant-Leader and a Guru.
- There were other things — that were observed (as part of the learning process) and measured — that were used as input to our decision.
This is a sharing moment, about ‘Lean Startup‘…using our situation as a real-life example. Lean Startup is simply a method that one can use to try out an idea, without the big upfront fluff — just start with a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and then Iterate from there to add some more Features (prioritized things that add greatest value) to the Product (or Service, in our case). With this method, one can get his/her idea going, learn from it (from metrics / feedback), and then adjust accordingly (Pivot or Persevere). Refer to Figure-1 below.
Here is how we applied this ‘Lean Startup’ method:
- First, we had an ‘idea’ (provide a service of value)
- Second, we then ‘built’ a website for its delivery
- Third, we measured and observed this endeavor
- Fourth, based on the gathered observations (learnings) and metrics, we came to a decision point: ‘To Pivot or To Persevere’…that was the question on hand.
Figure-1: Lean Startup — Fast Learning Cycle is built-in — without the Big Upfront Fluff.
In this case, within the context of the name of our Blog site, we have decided to Pivot — to change our Blog site’s name to ‘Lean Agile Guru‘ and setup a new web address bearing the new name (referring now to this Blog site!).
Lean Startup is applicable to an individual, a family, a team, a team of teams, a community, an organization, etc. It has a ‘Fast Learning Cycle‘ that allows you to make corrective actions, fast.
If you must Pivot, then do so…at the first responsible moment. Forget about sunk cost (regardless of the magnitude). It is costlier—overtime – to continue Persevering whilst heading towards the wrong direction.
October 15, 2022: My new book, “SAFe Is Like …“, is now available on Amazon. 
What our students think about the Lean Agile Guru (“Author of SAFe is Like …“) — click here
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