When is the last time you learned a new skill? If you’re like most people, there is always something new to learn in order to deliver the value your organization needs. And new can be scary. 

I have an analogy that helps me when I’m learning something new. It comes from the Software Development world.

Software developers use a process called agile development. In agile, a Minimal Viable Product, or MVP, is deployed to the customer. The MVP is the smallest possible solution that can go out the door. There is something incredibly valuable about having the customer provide feedback early on so the next iteration can incorporate that feedback. And the process repeats itself over and over in what is called “sprints.”The beauty of agile is that resources are used efficiently to develop a product that is actually useful and meets the needs of the customer. 

Agile asks these 3 questions:

• What went well?

• What didn’t go well?

• What can we change or improve for next time?

You can ask yourself this when you try out a new skill. You can even use it to approach your life and ask these three questions at the end of every week.

Work is anything you do to create value for somebody else. I wrote an article where I mentioned that others are the best judge of your performance. In the world of work, you need the feedback of others to know what the value of your work is, or your performance. 

And, it helps if you enjoy what you do. You want to make a contribution. You want to know that you are channeling your strengths intelligently. And remember, you are the best judge of your strengths.

If we look at our work using the agile process, we notice two sources of feedback: 

1. The people you are creating value for

2. You, as you pay attention to what activities strengthen and energize you

So you can take these two sources of feedback and use them to iterate what’s next for you. Are you strengthened by your work? Is your work creating value for others? As you listen to these two feedback channels, you can fine tune your career path by focusing on the activities that strengthen you and the activities that have a big impact. 

You’re never too old to learn new skills. The next time you come across an opportunity to learn something new, ask yourself “what is the MVP I can deploy, get feedback on, and iterate?”