This thread somehow filtered into one of my folders and I'm just now seeing it. Very interesting discussion.

I agree with the analogy of a sports team to some extent. You go into the competition fully committed and expecting to win. However, in a competition, one competitor always loses. And how to deal with falling short of expectation, short of commitment, or what happens when our dedication, or preparation is not enough, is a tough thing to figure out. It takes soul searching and rework.

In this scenario, we're not in a competition with anyone except ourselves. Actually, thinking about it again, maybe we are in competition: with others' expectations of what we can achieve as part of Modernization. IMO, where the analogy breaks down is that we can decide what it means to “win” and we can decide what's in and out of scope, and continue redefining and refining it as we go along, so that we meet our most important targets and discard other ideas along the way. We can also engage our stakeholders so that we can guide their expectations and let them be a part of the process, rather than judging from the outside, or being in the dark for several years, and then having the curtain lifted.

Just a few thoughts from an amateur competitive combat sport athlete and professional code slinger.

Rosie​