Life as an Introverted Mobber
Our latest experience report is by Aaron Griffith. Aaron shares what it’s like to be an introvert on a mob programming team. I was introduced to Aaron by some of his enthusiastic, extroverted teammates at Agile 2015. We were chatting about how they enjoy being mobbers. I asked, “Are you extroverts?” They said, “Most definitely.” I remarked, sure it must be great being a mob programmer if you are an extrovert, but how about us introverts? That’s when they introduced me to Aaron.
After a short discussion, Aaron graciously agreed to write a report about his experiences because, well, he’s trying to step outside of his comfort zone. He enjoys being a mob programmer and he’s an introvert, too.
With mob programming, developers work together as a team. One person is the driver at the keyboard; the rest play the role of Navigator, giving the driver advice. It is the Navigator’s responsibility to discuss and formulate what should be coded and the responsibility of the Driver, to translate the ideas and guidance of the Navigators into code. The mob rotates Drivers every few minutes. This is intense, personal interaction, all day long. How do introverts stand up to this challenge?
Mob programming involves lots of intense teamwork; it also involves a lot of social interaction with new people, too, especially if you mob like the folks at Hunter Industries do. They frequently welcome others to join them for a day or a few hours. The rotation of who is in the mob changes frequently as guests come and go. And their mob is prone to energetic discussions.
Yet, as you find by reading Aaron’s report, he enjoys being part of a mob, even though there are times he needs to pull away and recharge his batteries. And that’s important. For a mob to work effectively, team members need to learn how to take breaks, deal graciously with conflicts, and to effectively contribute whether they are introverted or not.
If you’d like to share what you’ve learned on your agile journey, I encourage you to consider writing an experience report. The Agile Experience Report Initiative is interested in hearing your ideas and helping you tell your story.
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