Stand-Ups Aren't Mandatory, But They are Game Changers
How rejecting bad standups leads to actual alignment
I’ve written before about the power of huddling with your team each morning. Born out of the early days of the Agile software movement, the Daily Stand-up was built on a simple idea: a quick morning huddle to align on the day’s goal.
I used to ask my team, “What are we focusing on today, gents?”
Even now, when my wife and I kick off a busy Saturday with her asking, “Wanna do a quick stand-up?”—I still get a kick out of it.
The goal was never complicated. We’d literally stand up, walk over to our Kanban board, and look at what we saw.
Did we talk the day before? Of course.
Will we talk again later today? Definitely.
But this was different.
This short check-in over coffee brought clarity. It crystallized our focus. It helped us assemble the puzzle pieces before launching into the unknown.
Can a Daily Stand-up get stale? Of course.
Has corporate America cannibalized it—grabbing the name and slapping it on a traditional PMO status meeting?
Absolutely. And it’s a tragedy.
Here’s how I helped two teams fix it.
When the Stand-up Isn’t a Stand-up
I remember two situations that perfectly illustrate how the daily stand-up gets misused, and how teams can reclaim its purpose.
At Ramsey Solutions and later at Regions, I noticed something odd. The teams I coached were attending two “daily standups.” Not something they told me directly — but I saw it in their calendars. So I joined both.
The first was the official one. On the calendar. With managers. It was a status update, plain and simple. People shared progress while others silently endured. Energy? Zero. Alignment? Minimal. Value? Questionable at best.
Then I joined the second meeting—the one not called “daily standup” on the calendar.
This one was magic. The team was huddled up, relaxed, focused. They looked at their board and asked, “What are we trying to finish today?” They shared blockers, pitched in, encouraged each other. This wasn’t a status meeting—it was an actual team sync.
So I asked, guys, what are we doing right now? They chuckled and said, “it’s our standup after the standup.”
I was curious, so I leaned in. “Why are you doing both?”
Their answer was telling:
“The first one is the stand-up. This one is where we align on our day.”
That told me everything.
They didn’t realize this meeting—the one full of life—was a real stand-up. The first one was just a misbranded status meeting in disguise. A corporate costume slapped over a beautiful practice.
In both cases, I told the team:
“What if you stopped going to the other standup? You’re already doing the right thing. That first meeting? It’s not a stand-up. It’s a status report with a new label. And you don’t need to attend it.”
They agreed. Joy returned. The real stand-up stayed. Not because it must, but because they wanted it. And the team started their days focused, aligned, and energized. And they felt as though a little bit of their soul was returned.
Landing the Plane
If your stand-up feels more like a corporate cage match than a chance to connect, you’re not crazy—it probably is.
Somewhere along the way, someone slapped the word “Agile” onto a status meeting and called it a stand-up. And then they put it on your calendar. And then they told you it was mandatory.
But here’s the truth:
You don’t owe your mornings to status updates.
You don’t have to start your day with soul-sucking performance theater.
You can take back your time, your energy, and your alignment.
Start by asking the real question:
“What are we actually trying to finish today?”
That’s it.
That’s your stand-up.
No more faking it. No more pretending a meeting brings value just because someone said so. Take ownership. Take five minutes. Stand up, huddle up, and launch into your day like a team that actually wants to win.
It’s your time. Make it count. ☕🔥