The value is within our intent; the rituals only help us consistently perform. Our daily, religious, workplace rituals serve the same purpose. They enforce us to show up regularly. However, if we have a weak intent, rituals add no value.
Consider the world of the projects. We do stand-ups to communicate progress to date, planned work and impediments. However, the effectiveness of this ritual depends on our intent. Do we intend to paint a rosy picture or genuine communication about the ground reality?
Similarly, the Project Status Reports (PSR) are useless if we provide a project summary with diplomatic commentary. If we are not putting facts on the table and are shy to have a genuine conversation about risk/issues, PSR serves no value.
Rituals without the right intentions are useless because they only tick the box. Ticking the box to merely protect and cover ourselves, leaving the overall purpose behind.
It may be a good time to stop and reflect on your intent before performing the next ritual!
