In our visit to the National Museum of the American Indians, on June 9, 2019, my son bought a Talking Stick. According to the Navajos, who ever is currently holding the Talking Stick has the privilege to speak and that everyone listens… then he/she thereafter passes on the Talking Stick to someone else so he/she may also speak with thoughts on the matter on hand…or entirely on a different matter…and so on…until everyone who wishes to speak has spoken.
Over lunch time, on that same day we bought the Talking Stick, we (the family) were casually talking… and my son was holding the Talking Stick… and he used it… he called us all out with a remark: ‘ahem … I am holding the Talking Stick… it’s my turn to speak and y’all listen’…
he did speak, we listened… then he passed on the Talking Stick to his mother…so she in turn may speak… then she passed it to our daughter … then from my daughter to me…then it went on for several more rounds. We had fun with it! With it, we’ve attentively listened to one another… one speaker at a time… instead of talking over each other.
What do you think? Would the use of a Talking Stick help with your team’s Daily Standup?
October 15, 2022: My new book, “SAFe Is Like …“, is now available on Amazon. 
You will get a FREE SIGNED COPY if/when you register, pay, and complete a class by the Lean Agile Guru.
