I was lucky enough to be in on Agile right at the beginning – someone I worked with at a start-up had been working with the authors of Extreme Programming and we were ready to go when the book came out. Since then there has been an Agile evolution and an explosion of Agile processes, practices, and certifications but the basic concept remains the same: have a list and work it down in manageable pieces; let the long range view change as it needs to.

Very few of the software projects and programs I manage these days use anything but Agile processes; over the past dozen years I’ve created and adapted processes for so many organizations that in general I tend to think in Agile. With this mindset it’s been pretty easy to apply the concepts to other areas of my life and other kinds of businesses.

As an example of non-business uses of Agile practices, consider home ownership and its related and never-ending task list. I have a home that was built in bits and pieces starting sometime in the 1930s or 1940s (no one knows for sure) plus an acre of yard. Like all homeowners I have a set of chores that need to be done seasonally; unlike most owners of newer homes or smaller yards I have a never-ending backlog of upgrade, reclamation and repair projects as well as the usual maintenance tasks. Agile comes in very handy with a list like this. The chores and projects tend to be seasonal – indoors/outdoors, weather dependencies and drivers, etc. – and of a broad range of cost and effort, from major remodeling projects to cleaning out attics to gardening. Being a consultant, I often tend to either have extra time and not so much extra cash, or an excellent income stream but not much extra time. So I can sort my backlog (and add to it) on a regular basis and figure out monthly or seasonally what I’m going to tackle in what order based on current needs, resources, and urgency. It works like a charm and keeps me from worrying about forgetting something or wondering exactly what it is I’ve been spending my time and money on. I even use it weekend by weekend – what’s at the top of the list, what’s filler, what do I have time for, what does the weather allow…(what do I feel like doing J )

From a business perspective, some applications are pretty obvious. As an example, I recently wrote an article for professional organizers on how to apply Agile to organizing projects, particularly to large projects like organizing an entire house or storage area.

Less obvious, but more pervasive, is the need for ongoing business maintenance. These can be big things like a new website, small things like tweets, and anything in between – new logos, stationery, filing process, facilities update, benefits overhaul, you name it. These can be managed in the same way as any set of tasks in an agile environment using varying timeframes – quarterly, monthly, yearly, etc. – with a prioritized backlog. As with any Agile process priority and estimates are critical, and monitoring of velocity and the backlog are necessary to keep things rolling at a reasonable and affordable pace. Some Kanban concepts can come into play here as well, and the entire thing can be divided by departments for a larger business.

The bottom line is that Agile can help us be agile in parts of our businesses and lives far removed from software development. Just apply process to imagination.