The Daily Standup: Clear & Concise Updates
In Silicon Valley, the "Daily Standup" is a 15-minute meeting where everyone answers three questions. To sound professional, you need to be concise and use the correct tenses.
The Three Questions
- What did you do yesterday? (Use Simple Past)
- What will you do today? (Use "I'm going to" or "I'll")
- Are there any blockers? (Use "I'm blocked on..." or "No blockers")
Tense Choice: Past vs. Present Perfect
Simple Past: Finished Tasks
Use this when you mention a specific time or a specific completed task.
- "Yesterday, I merged the pull request."
- "I fixed the CSS issue on the landing page."
Present Perfect: Current Status
Use this when the focus is on the result that exists now.
- "I have updated the documentation." (It's ready for you to read now.)
- "We have reached 80% test coverage." (This is our current state.)
The "No Blockers" Signal
If you are not stuck, the most common phrase is simply:
- "No blockers."
- "I'm all clear."
If you are stuck:
- "I'm blocked on the database migration."
- "I'm waiting for a review from the design team."
Pro Tip: Be Concise
Avoid long stories. Instead of "I spent three hours trying to find the bug and then I finally found it in the header," say:
- "I identified and fixed the header bug."
- Awkward: I wrote the email, so you can review it now.
- Natural: I have written the email, so you can review it now.
- Forgetting the auxiliary verb.
- Incorrect: I finished already the report.
- Correct: I have already finished the report.
A practical pattern for standups
A strong daily update often uses both tenses:
I have completed the API integration, and I deployed it to staging this morning. Today I will add the error-handling tests.
- Have completed focuses on the current result.
- Deployed reports a finished action at a specific time.
Try it yourself
Rewrite this update to make it clearer:
I fix the bug. I tested it. Now it is ready for review.
A better version:
I have fixed the bug and tested it. It is ready for review.