Re: Practice: Pair Programming

William Pietri <william-JnOFOPmZhjNBDgjK7y7TUQ@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> On Wed, 2004-11-10 at 08:17, Tim King wrote:
>> Improv only works in a collaborative relationship, not a 
>> competitive one.
> 
> Having done some improvisational theater, I think that's not quite
> right. Although the collaboration is primary, there's often a lot of
> good-natured competition. It's similar to people telling stories in a
> group: everybody wants to be the one telling the best story, but the
> overriding goal is that everybody have a good time.

That's a good point. I know sometimes if there's a problem that no one 
wants to tackle, or even moreso, that my colleagues say can't be solved, 
but I see a way to solve it-- Sometimes I feel compelled to outdo my 
coworkers. I just want to get down and show them it _can_ be done, and 
here's how. This of course usually happens in areas in which I have 
strengths, whereas others have other strengths. In any case, this kind 
of competitive impulse can't be all bad.

Of course, when we contrast competition and collaboration, we're 
referring to the competitive forces described in Peopleware. Maybe we 
need to distinguish also two different kinds of compatition: destructive 
competition (which impels us to mitigate the other guy's strengths, to 
cut each other down) and constructive competition (which impels us to 
maximize our own strengths, to build each other up).

Maybe competition gets a bad rap for the same reason criticism gets a 
bad rap. There are two kinds of criticism: that which hurts and that 
which helps. And in order to be in a team, you have to learn to use the 
latter while shunning the former.

-TimK


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