Thoughts from a Thirsty Bear

"A little learning is a dang'rous thing; Drink deep or taste not the Pierian spring: There shallow drafts intoxicate the brain, And drinking largely sobers us again" - from " An Essay on Criticism, Part II ", Alexander Pope Those who know me, or have read my profile online, know that I teach teams how to develop software using iterative tools and techniques. These require rewiring some of the traditional, waterfall-style thinking and approaches, and yes, they can be a culture shock. In order to warn my trainees I always go through a specific explanation with them. It kind of goes like this: Many folks expect learning to be straight line. You do a training course, or read a book for something, then you use it.  Unfortunately this is the South Park Underpants Gnomes model of learning. It leaves out the important part. Learning does not work in a straight line. It's messy. It's unpredictable. You will make mistakes. Go down blind intellectual alleys. Get co...