5. “Why wasn’t that bug
found in test?”
I was getting the blame for
a bug found in production
I felt the blame was
unjustified so I was angry
I said “We couldn’t have
found that bug in test”
9. We are not OK with
our feelings
Check feelings
before responding
Response
10. “Why wasn’t that bug
found in test?”
I was getting the blame for
a bug found in production
I know more about testing
now
“Why did you put that bug
in the code?”
11. • Ask questions to
improve your
assumptions
• 3 interpretations
• Debugging here is
tough
• Don’t respond if not
OK with feelings
name that tune - tap test is a good example of curse of knowledge
like tap test, communication is incomplete
we rely on receiver filling in gaps
as receiver we fill in the missing gaps with what we assume to be the correct details
assumptions based on message + extras
in other words, you are unlikely to hear my message as I intended it to be heard
Fear not!
I’m Duncan Nisbet & today I’d like to share with you VS Interaction Model
Her model can be used to understand our communication & provides practical advice on how to bring derailed conversations back on track
I learned about the model a couple of years ago
series of feedback loops - ask questions - fill gaps in our knowledge - hear message as intended
interactions flow from intake through to response & normally are lightening fast
meaning, significance & part of response internal
Let’s walkthrough the model with an example familiar to us all
intake - what we see & hear
meaning - interpretation of message. where we use those assumptions to fill in missing gaps
significance - our feelings about our interpretation
response - based on above, also filters
Context:
Development team had been working overtime to meet a deadline
I believed we had done the best testing possible given the time/people/resources
The guy asking the question knew this
I was in ass covering mode
we miss part or all of the message
I didn't see the person asking the question
importance of body language - i missed a big chunk of the message
1st feedback loop
turn around & as the question
we interpret the wrong message
different definitions - e.g. TDD, Unit
2nd feedback loop
let sender know what interpretation you’ve made
Think of 3 different interpretations
murky - internal feedback loop
we hang on to emotions from previous / upcoming situations
check your feelings are relevant to the situation
If not relevant, don’t respond
Was my anger justified?
Significance to response is hardcoded
Responses in heated situations are hard, if not impossible, to debug
If possible, try to pause & check if OK with your feelings
If not OK, don’t respond
Context:
Development team had been running too fast all month
Programmers not checking their code before handing it over to Testers.
Testers were picking up the pieces
Everyone stressed
No one in the team pushing back on new features/changes
EDIT: This is another example of failing to debug a conversation (should have an example of successful debug)
Easier to debug the message &/or your interpretation
Think of 3 different interpretations
Don’t try & debug significance &/or response
Try to get to being OK with your feelings before responding
Don’t respond if not OK with feelings, or feelings are not relevant (if you can!)
Thank you for your time, resources at the end of the slide deck
I’d like to leave you with one classic example of misinterpretation…