Happy World No Resources Day

Here’s the text of an email I sent to my colleagues this morning. What are you doing to celebrate World No Resources Day?

Today is World No Resources Day. What does that mean? It’s a prompt to stop and think about the language we all use every day and how it shapes our perceptions of the world we inhabit.

When planning large programmes and thinking about the big picture it’s all too easy to slip into a mode of thinking which dehumanises the work that we do. We think of deadlines, of deliverables, of stakeholders and of resources. But thinking like that blinds us to the reality that everyone who works with us is another human being, another person who is an individual and who has their own unique skills and outlook on life.

When you talk to a person face to face you probably call them by their name; maybe you talk to them about what they can do and what they want. I don’t imagine that you address them as “hello, senior developer” or “hi there, testing resource”. Yet when you talk about them behind closed doors, have you ever found yourself doing that?

So today when you’re talking with your colleagues, when you’re thinking about the work you’re doing, take a moment to stop and ask yourself: “am I talking about a resource or a person?”

It’s only a little thing, one little word, but I believe it’s important.

Thank you for reading this far. If you want to read more, here’s a couple of related links:

http://worldnoresourcesday.com/index.php/why-should-i-join-in/
http://www.estherderby.com/2010/12/resources-dont-write-software-people-do.html

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