Sketchplanations

Explaining one thing a week in a sketch

Sharpen the saw from Stephen Covey illustration: A woodcutter explains that they have no time to stop and sharpen the saw as they have so many trees to cut

Sharpen the saw

Sharpen the saw is a metaphor and story to remind us to refresh and recharge ourselves.

When you're deep in, it may feel like you have no time to pause. No time to take a break, there's too much to get done. Perhaps no time to stop and think about how you're working. No time to step back and improve your processes or work on your tools. Maybe even no time to look after yourself, to recharge, to reflect, to take a walk.

As the metaphor goes, you may feel you have no time to stop and sharpen the saw. Until you do it, and then you may realise you have no time to not stop and sharpen the saw.

Sharpen the saw is habit 7 of Stephen Covey's classic The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Keep exploring

Yak shaving explained: someone looks on confused as another explains the convoluted story which led to them sitting there shaving a yak, just like solving problems in software development
The upward spiral from Stephen Covey illustration: showing a spiral growing from the bottom with Learn Commit Do repeating as it rises and someone reading a map, packing their gear and heading off determinedly on a trip illustrating each step
The tomato slicing test to see if you need to sharpen your knife. A knife running over the surface of a tomato followed by a disaster needing sharpening or some perfect precise slices
Buy Me A Coffee