Workbook

Make the Mission Yours

Role: Generic Workbook (Any Role)

Use these activities to apply each principle to your current product, service, or project. These activities are a sample to get you started, not an exhaustive list. Adapt and expand them based on your team's context and needs. Capture your answers, share them with your team, and revisit them as you learn.

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Important: When Using AI Tools

When using AI-assisted activities, always double-check for accuracy and meaning each and every time. AI tools can help accelerate your work, but human judgment, validation, and critical thinking remain essential.

Review AI-generated content with your team, validate it against real user feedback and domain knowledge, and ensure it truly serves your mission and user outcomes before proceeding.

1) Shared Mission and Vision

Connect your daily work to mission and user outcomes so you decide with clarity.

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Learn More

For more information and deeper understanding of this principle, refer to the 1) Shared Mission and Vision section in the framework.

Workbook Activities (do now)

☐Rewrite the mission in one sentence and list the two user outcomes your current work should move.
☐Annotate today’s top task with the outcome it supports and how you will notice success.
☐Share your outcome mapping with a peer and ask them to challenge one gap you may have missed.
☐Create a simple “why this matters” note on your ticket or task and post it in your team channel.
☐At standup, state one task and the mission outcome it supports; refine based on team feedback.

AI Assisted Activities

☐Use generative AI to draft a mission statement or outcome mapping, then have your team review and refine it together to ensure it reflects real user needs and business goals.
☐Ask AI to generate potential user outcomes for your current work, then validate each one against direct user feedback and domain knowledge.
☐Use AI to help structure your "why this matters" notes, but ensure human team members validate that each task truly serves the mission before proceeding.
☐Have AI analyze past mission statements or product visions, then use those insights in a team discussion to refine your current mission alignment.

Evidence of Progress

☐You can explain how each task ties to mission and user outcomes.
☐Peers acknowledge your stated outcomes and offer fewer clarifying questions.

2) Break Down Silos

Reduce over-the-wall handoffs by collaborating directly with adjacent roles.

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Learn More

For more information and deeper understanding of this principle, refer to the 2) Break Down Silos section in the framework.

Workbook Activities (do now)

☐Invite a partner in a different role to a 20-minute co-working session to close an open question.
☐Document one recurring handoff friction and propose a specific tweak to remove it this sprint.
☐Add a one-line “handoff guardrail” (what must be true before/after) to your active task and review it with the receiving role.
☐Share a WIP screenshot/doc with another function and ask for one integration risk to address today.
☐Replace one async back-and-forth with a live huddle to finish a task together.

AI Assisted Activities

☐When AI generates work products (code, designs, documentation), have cross-functional team members review it together to ensure it serves the mission and users.
☐Use AI to help draft context sync agendas or meeting notes, but ensure all roles contribute their perspectives during the actual sync to build shared understanding.
☐Have AI analyze handoff patterns in your team's communication, then use those insights in a cross-functional discussion to identify and remove friction points.
☐Use AI to help structure collaboration sessions, but ensure human team members make decisions together about what to build and how it serves users.

Evidence of Progress

☐Fewer reopens or clarifications on the item you co-worked.
☐Integration risks are identified and addressed earlier.

3) User Engagement

Ground decisions in real user signals, not assumptions.

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Learn More

For more information and deeper understanding of this principle, refer to the 3) User Engagement section in the framework.

Workbook Activities (do now)

☐Observe or replay one user/support session; write three takeaways and one change you will make now.
☐Turn one user quote into an actionable tweak in your current work and document it.
☐Identify a user assumption you hold; design a same-sprint validation (log, quick test, or direct question).
☐Add one lightweight telemetry/log to capture a behavior you currently assume; review it post-release.
☐Share a short “before/after” narrative of how a user experiences the problem you are solving.

AI Assisted Activities

☐Use AI to analyze user feedback, support tickets, or usage data to identify patterns, but always validate AI insights through direct user engagement or observation.
☐Have AI generate questions for user interviews based on your assumptions, then use those questions in real conversations with users to build genuine empathy.
☐Use AI to help summarize user research findings, but ensure team members review the summaries and add their own observations from direct user interactions.
☐Have AI analyze user behavior patterns from telemetry, then discuss those patterns with actual users to understand the "why" behind the behavior.

Evidence of Progress

☐A recent user interaction changed a decision you made.
☐You added instrumentation or validation and reviewed it after release.

4) Outcomes Over Outputs

Define and check impact, not just completion.

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Learn More

For more information and deeper understanding of this principle, refer to the 4) Outcomes Over Outputs section in the framework.

Workbook Activities (do now)

☐Add an “expected outcome” line to your current task/ticket and get stakeholder confirmation.
☐Define one measurable signal you can influence for this work; note how/when you will observe it.
☐Plan a quick outcome readout 1–2 weeks after release and schedule it.
☐After release, post the observed result versus expected; propose one adjustment if it missed.
☐Add a rollback/mitigation note tied to the outcome you are targeting.

AI Assisted Activities

☐When AI generates features or work products, define outcome metrics upfront and measure whether AI-generated work achieves intended user outcomes, not just technical completion.
☐Use AI to help analyze outcome data and identify patterns, but have human team members interpret what those patterns mean for users and the mission.
☐Have AI help draft outcome definitions and success criteria, but ensure the team validates them against real user needs and business goals before proceeding.
☐Use AI to track and report on outcome metrics, but schedule human team reviews to discuss what the metrics mean and how to adjust based on observed impact.

Evidence of Progress

☐Tasks/PRs include expected outcomes and post-release checks.
☐You adjusted based on outcome data, not only bug reports.

5) Domain Knowledge

Understand the ecosystem, constraints, and dependencies shaping your work.

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Learn More

For more information and deeper understanding of this principle, refer to the 5) Domain Knowledge section in the framework.

Workbook Activities (do now)

☐Map upstream/downstream dependencies for your current item and note owners and failure behaviors.
☐Sketch a simple front-stage/back-stage view showing where your work supports the user experience.
☐Meet one domain expert (support/ops/policy/finance) to confirm constraints relevant to this task.
☐Review a past incident related to domain gaps; list one guardrail you will apply now.
☐Call out one domain rule in your task/PR and verify it with the appropriate owner.

AI Assisted Activities

☐Use AI to help summarize domain documentation or industry reports, but validate AI-generated domain knowledge through direct engagement with domain experts and real-world observation.
☐Have AI generate questions about domain constraints or ecosystem relationships, then use those questions in conversations with domain experts to build deep understanding.
☐Use AI to help draft service maps or ecosystem diagrams, but ensure team members review them with domain experts to verify accuracy and completeness.
☐Have AI analyze past incidents or domain-related issues, then discuss those insights with the team and domain experts to identify patterns and prevent similar problems.

Evidence of Progress

☐You can describe impacts to upstream/downstream systems and users.
☐Domain constraints appear explicitly in your notes or reviews.

6) The Art of Storytelling

Explain work in human terms to align stakeholders and motivate action.

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Learn More

For more information and deeper understanding of this principle, refer to the 6) The Art of Storytelling section in the framework.

Workbook Activities (do now)

☐Practice a 60-second story: who the user is, their pain, what you changed, and the result; share in chat.
☐Add a real user quote or data point to your next update to make the impact concrete.
☐Create two versions of an update: one for peers (details/trade-offs) and one for stakeholders (outcome/next step).
☐Write a short before/after vignette for the current item and post it in your team channel.
☐Pair with a teammate to refine the story so they can retell it accurately to others.

AI Assisted Activities

☐Use AI to help structure or draft stories, but refine them with real user anecdotes, emotions, and personal observations from direct user interactions.
☐Have AI generate different versions of explanations for different audiences, but ensure each version includes authentic human stories about real user impact.
☐Use AI to help summarize technical work, but lead presentations with human stories about real users, using AI-generated summaries as supporting material.
☐Have AI help draft documentation or updates, but always include real user quotes, data points, or anecdotes that connect the work to human impact.

Evidence of Progress

☐Teammates or stakeholders can retell your story correctly.
☐Updates include user quotes or data and resonate with non-technical audiences.