The document discusses the distinction between 'blockers' and 'problems' in the context of workflow and productivity. It argues that many issues are often overlooked or forgotten, leading to missed opportunities for improvement. By consistently recording and addressing these problems, teams can enhance their processes and ultimately achieve better results.

1. Beyond blockers
James Aylett

2. “Yesterday no blockers”
This is (probably) a lie
More likely that you don’t remember any
blockers now
Or maybe that you don’t consider them
important

3. “No important blockers”
Had to look something up
Had to stop and work round a bug in
boto|DRF|node|the universe

4. “No important blockers”
Had to wait for a PR review
Had to spend 10 minutes searching Stack
Overflow but it turns out someone
already knew the answer

5. “No important blockers”
Had to wait because Circle was down
Had to wait because the internet was
down

6. Problems not blockers
Blockers you want to forget (urgh! got in
my way)
Problems are areas where we can
improve
Improvement isn’t just about big things

7. Problems not blockers
We should always try to make things
better (for ourselves, our products, our
users)
Even small problems, if they occur
frequently, can cause significant
problems

8. Problems not blockers
As we solve specific problems, others
will become obvious or the most
important
But how can we know what to work on
unless we remember the problems?

9. Remember problems
We forget them overnight, so:
Record them as they happen

10. Remember problems
Notepad on desk?
Slack channel?
Andon flags?

11. What next?
We’ll be able to raise problems in retro
Including frequency information
So can act where we’ll see biggest
gains

12. What next?
Anything we record
we can graph
Gives everyone a view on whether things
are getting better or worse

13. –Mike Rother, Toyota Kata
“We know that the vast majority of problems
are caused by the system within which people
work, rather than by the individuals
themselves.”