I love analogies, for their ability to convey deeper insight and meaning in a quick, small package.

And so I’ll draw a parallel to my flower analogy, borrowing from the butterfly to extend it beyond the topic of the software to the team itself. I love the idea that the caterpillar bundles up into a cocoon and then completely redesigns itself.  Transforming from a functional, living thing into something completely new. Interrupt the process in the middle, and you just have some goo, with no discernable structure.

Allow it to develop, according to the plan, and you can get something beautiful, amazing, and delicate, with a completely different format and structure from the caterpillar.

Fit for purpose, it is unrecognizable when compared to the simple components from which it came.