From Distraction to Direction: How Scrum Transformed My Life

When I was in my final year of university, I faced one of the biggest challenges of my life. I had become distracted by the wrong crowd, and that distraction cost me dearly — a carryover that almost derailed my academic journey.

For a while, it felt like my life was spiralling out of control. I lost sight of my goals and struggled to focus.

But then, something changed. Life gave me a second chance. After finishing my degree, I spent a year teaching in a government-underfunded secondary school in Nigeria. It was a humbling experience.

There, I met bright, eager young minds, full of potential but with limited opportunities. I saw kids who, despite their brilliance, might never fulfill their dreams because of societal limitations or lack of resources.

It was a turning point for me. I realized that maximizing potential — whether my own or others’ — was my calling.

This experience became the foundation for my current path, not just in life but in my professional journey as well. The idea of helping people unlock their full potential led me to Scrum, a framework that fosters teamwork and delivers results, sprint by sprint.

Scrum: A Framework for Transformation

When I first encountered Scrum, it felt like a revelation. Imagine a team working together, communicating, collaborating, and improving every step of the way. The focus isn’t just on the end product but on delivering value continuously, learning, and adjusting as needed. It’s about getting better every day.

In Scrum, projects are broken down into sprints — short, focused periods where the team works toward delivering a piece of the project that’s complete and ready for review. This incremental delivery allows for immediate feedback, ensuring that the team is always aligned with stakeholder expectations.

Reflecting on my teaching days, I saw a parallel. The students I taught in that underfunded school didn’t have access to the full resources or opportunities that other kids had. But every day in the classroom, we made progress, even if it was just small steps.

Similarly, in Scrum, you don’t have to wait until the end of a project to see if it’s successful. Every sprint allows you to check your progress and course-correct if necessary.

Lessons from Teaching to Leading Projects

The transition from a classroom in Nigeria to working with cross-functional teams in a corporate environment might seem like a leap, but the principles are surprisingly similar. Just as I sought to help students maximize their potential, I now work to help teams deliver successful projects using Scrum.

One of the most powerful tools in Scrum is the daily standup — a short, 15-minute meeting where each team member shares what they did yesterday, what they plan to do today, and any obstacles they’re facing. It’s the same concept I used with my students, checking in with them daily, ensuring they had what they needed to succeed, and helping them overcome challenges.

In the same way, a Scrum team thrives when communication is open and constant. In my current role, I see how effective daily collaboration and commitment to shared goals are for delivering projects on time and with quality. Whether it’s a task board showing our progress or a burndown chart highlighting what’s left, these tools act as our guideposts, keeping us focused on delivering value, just as I kept my students focused on their next step in learning.

Why Scrum Works

What I love most about Scrum is its adaptability. Life, like projects, is unpredictable. Things change — requirements shift, new challenges arise — but Scrum embraces that. Just as I had to pivot and realign my life during those tough years in university, Scrum allows teams to adjust to new realities without losing momentum.

In my experience, success comes down to one thing: understanding that every day is an opportunity to make progress. Whether it’s in life or in work, the key is to keep moving forward, always improving.

Scrum offers a framework for that, encouraging continuous feedback and improvement.

As I continue to work with teams, coaching them on delivering successful projects, I draw from my own story. I remind them that, like the students I once taught, we all have potential waiting to be unlocked. Scrum helps us do that — one sprint at a time.

Through Scrum, I’ve found a way to maximize the potential of teams, helping them deliver value, overcome obstacles, and continuously improve. It’s not just about getting things done — it’s about getting better every day.