Technical Project Management #3: Requirements Should Tell a Story
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Video Description
If your requirements list is full of technical gibberish that only developers understand, you're missing out on the collaboration and trust-building that makes everything else work. This video explains why story-shaped requirements beat technical task lists every time.
What you'll learn:
• The readability test: can outsiders understand your list? • What technical gibberish looks like (real examples) • What story-shaped requirements look like (same work, reframed) • The three functions: trust-building, validation, flexibility • Goals vs. implementations: why this distinction matters • Warning signs that a requirement doesn't tell a story • The jazz analogy: knowing the tune vs. writing out the solo
Key insights:
• Story-shaped requirements invite collaboration; technical requirements shut people out • Each requirement is like a scene: protagonist, intention, outcome • Write down the goal, discover the implementation • If you can't answer "who benefits?" — it's not a story • Scope creep happens when nobody's sure what "done" looks like • The goal stays fixed while the implementation can flex
Previous Video: Your Requirements List Is a Negotiating Tool Next Video: Technical Gibberish vs. Human-Readable Requirements ► Full Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGxFXI4dC2shCJwhTY-P2726zts26_AKF
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0:00 Requirements Should Tell a Story 0:49 The Readability Test 1:13 What Technical Gibberish Looks Like 2:08 What Stories Look Like 2:56 Why This Matters 3:20 The Three Functions of Story-Shaped Requirements 4:06 Technical Requirements Shut People Out 4:58 Goals vs. Implementations 5:26 Why Goals Enable Flexibility 6:08 The Music Analogy 6:41 The Backlog Should Tell a Story 7:18 When Requirements Don't Tell a Story 8:07 Try This Exercise 8:45 Key Takeaways
Video Info
- Duration: 9:34
- Published: December 01, 2025
