The British Summer

War, I said war! shouted the Prime Minister.
We cannot let the situation continue.
The spiteful rhetoric that their leaders say, the threats, the utter disregard of international agreements.

We have done all that any country could do to conduct ourselves in peaceful way, but the situation has become intolerable.

We have had no sunshine this summer. We will have justice.
Every person on this planet is entitled to a share of the sun’s bright light.

Recognizing the threat to our country, the British Government has therefore decided today to declare war.
As we speak thousands of people carriers are on the way to their shores.
We will have justice!

The parliament erupted with cheers and shouting.

But aren’t we worried that if we attack Iran, they will use chemical warfare against us? asked the parliament speaker.

What Iran? said the Prime Minister. I’m talking about invading Spain.

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Whilst walking down the street, you sometimes suddenly find yourself ears-dropping in on other people’s conversations.
You don’t do it on purpose. You just pick up some dialog as you pass them by.

A little girl was walking with her mother on the footpath in our neighbourhood.
I was walking behind them, and just about to pass them, when I heard the little girl ask her mother a riddle.

Mummy, on what side of the road do people walk?

I immediately slowed my pace. I was intrigued by the question.
It’s a known fact the cars drive on the left hand side here in England.
Do people behave like drivers?

Most people are right handed. Does that have any impact on which side of the street people walk?

It’s a simple question. My brain started ticking. Complete overkill.
I slowed my pace to be able to follow the couple. I had to hear the answer.

I looked up. A simple observation. On both sides of the street there were shops. The road looked symmetrical. All conditions equal.
But there were twice as many of people on my side of the street. Why?

Observations defy assumptions.
It a trait that most of us in BPM have.
We assume that things will work in a certain way based on logical assumptions. We analyse the assumptions. We set expectations based on the assumptions. It’s just when we peek into the organization, we see people acting differently than expected.

I’ve given myself a task to try and create a list of observations in the BPM industry.
Observations sometimes defy expectations and professional assumptions.
Sometimes just articulating the obvious helps me to reevaluate those assumptions.

Back to the little girl’s question: on what side of the road do people walk in England?
The mother thought for a while, and then gave up. Ok. What side? she asked

The little girl smiled. The footpath with the most sun on it, of course… she replied.