In agile software development, story points are a widely used method for estimating the complexity, uncertainty and scope of tasks without referring to units of time.
But what if we look at this methodology through the lens of ancient mythology – specifically through the story of Orpheus and Eurydice? What does Orpheus, the legendary musician and poet of Greek mythology, have to do with Story Points?
Orpheus’ journey to Hades
Orpheus, known for his ability to make even stones weep with his music, goes to Hades to bring his beloved Eurydice back to the realm of the living. He is given one condition: He must not turn around on the way back to see if Eurydice is following him.
The relationship to Story Points
How does the story of Orpheus fit in with Story Points?
First of all, Orpheus’ journey teaches us that focusing on the essentials, the way out of Hades, is crucial. In agile development, this means that we need to focus on complexity and tasks relative to each other, without getting distracted by time estimates or other absolute metrics: Is story A more complex than story B or vice versa?
Because just as Orpheus’ backward glance derailed the entire endeavor, looking at time estimates can hinder the effectiveness of story points.
What else we can learn from Orpheus
Orpheus’ journey also teaches us not to give in to the temptation to anticipate the solution. Similar to solving a complex equation in mathematics, it doesn’t help us to guess the solution here either. Story points help us to solve the equation in a similar way to a statistical algorithm.
In addition, Orpheus shows us that the path to the goal is often associated with uncertainties that we cannot directly control. In agile development, the use of story points helps us to develop an awareness of these uncertainties.
Conclusion
The story of Orpheus and Eurydice offers a new perspective on story points in agile projects. It reminds us that sometimes the direct path prevents us from reaching the goal: If the river is too wide to jump across you should build a bridge. Or: If the problem is too big to reach it directly, you should use a suitable algorithm.