Having Compassion - The Autobahn Metaphor

At the XTC meeting on Tuesday 23rd August I had the pleasure of meeting Sven! He shared with me a way of relating to other people’s world view and actions which centred around “how fast do you drive on the Autobahn?”.

The autobahn is the German motorway - famous for having no speed limit. 

On the Autobahn<link> there is no speed limit, a driver can as fast as they like. Say we are driving at 80mph, we could then say that we perceive:

• 80mph is the CORRECT speed!
• The drivers going 50mph are delaying me and it is a nuisance overtaking them.
• The drivers going 180mph are dangerous and are risking crashing into me.

This leads to an interest situation where you can bisect the population of drivers as “agreeing” with your world view and those that are “detrimental” to you. Naturally this leads you somewhat into conflict… it would be GREAT if everyone just drove at YOUR speed right?!

How do we overcome this and actually relate to all the other drivers on the road then?

Developer Diary: Starting At TIM Group

Today was my first day working at TIM Group! I'm humbled to be working with so many enthusiastic and intelligent people. The culture and way of working at the company is a massive departure from what I am used to. Everyone in technology is responsible for themselves, trusted to get the work done and nurtured to improve. People understand the value of happiness and real work/life balance.

Even after a single day there I am seeing and feeling the difference. Little things like:

1. We managed to break something as I was being onboarded. A colleague spotted this before us, fixed it and notified us. No fuss, no muss.
2. For lunch we took 90 minutes and sang sea shanties, it was silly and glorious. It could have been embarrassing but it felt like a safe space :)
3. Everyone, including the CEO, started walking out at 5.30pm
4. For 7 years I've come home and gotten changed. There is relief when I can take off the suit. Today I walked in the door and I was already comfortable in my skin.

Exciting times :)