| There are so many anti-patterns here it's painful... If you're pairing, don't read your e-mail. Even if you're just in a solo work session, don't read your e-mail. It's incredibly disruptive and constant inbox checking will drop your productivity like a rock. It's okay to pair with multiple workstations (or a single workstation set up for multi-user mode, that's the dream I guess). Looking away from the "main screen" to check docs (or VCS, or the build, etc.) is perfectly fine, just don't get drawn in so deep that you forget about your partner. And certainly don't use that as an excuse to check your e-mail or slack! One strategy to apply is "show, don't tell". If you have a hard time explaining what you're going to try to do, just do it, the code will probably be clearer than your explanation alone. If it's not, use the conversation to drive the uncovering of assumptions, which can then be encoded in the source. Remember that pairing isn't simply two people, one keyboard. There are defined roles: the driver and the navigator. The driver handles mechanics, the navigator observes and questions assumptions. Then switch roles. The driver should fearlessly try the experimental things. If the navigator wants to experiment, ask to drive. |