Food for thought on Strategic Patience in AI Development.
“Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.“ – Vincent Van Gogh. The appeal of quick results in AI development can be strong, but real innovation often needs a slower, more careful approach. Van Gogh’s quote captures the essence of patience in AI projects.
Looking back on my time in the tech industry, I realized how important it is to be thorough, especially in new tech projects, even when it feels like you’re starting late. In one project, our team was eager to show quick results.
But we encountered many errors that required lots of rework, ultimately delaying the project and increasing costs. This taught us the importance of patience and precision.
Moving fast can be good, but only if you truly understand your product and technology. Agile methodology, including service design, provides a good framework for managing AI projects without rushing. Agile emphasizes iterative development, continuous feedback, and flexibility, allowing teams to make steady progress while maintaining high quality and sustainability. This approach helps ensure that AI projects are both precise and sustainable, preventing team members (and yourself) from getting overwhelmed, burned out, and frustrated by heavy workloads and unrealistic deadlines.
When we started our company years ago, we worked very long hours. Looking back, it wasn’t sustainable. We were so focused on quick progress that we neglected to pace ourselves, losing any work-life balance. After selling my start-up, I took a long break and learned a valuable lesson in India: ‚You can’t make grass grow faster by pulling on it.‘ This changed my view on growth and productivity. Sustainable growth requires patience and a thoughtful approach, just like Agile teaches.
What can we learn for our day-to-day leadership practice?
Leading AI projects without rushing requires patience, strategy, and precision. By adopting Agile principles, we can ensure that our AI projects are developed carefully, reducing errors and promoting sustainable growth. This patient approach ultimately leads to smoother and faster progress.
On the other hand, my experience working with young leaders from other departments is quite different. Some leaders resist new technologies, staying stuck in their ways, while others go overboard, working excessively hard.
Now it's your turn:
Lets’ bridge theory and bring it into your daily practice. These are questions to reflect on….
"Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience."
Ralph Waldo Emerson