User stories are reminders of features, not full specifications. Avoid recording every detail up front because details change. We’ll capture the details later, when they matter.
When a story reads like a contract, it stops being a conversation. When it reads like a reminder, it invites one.
Follow the acronym “INVEST” as a quick check.
- I.NDEPENDENT
- N.EGOTIABLE
- V.ALUABLE
- E.STIMATABLE
- S.MALL
- T.ESTABLE
VALUABLE
User story’s first job is to be valuable to the business.
Refactoring, architecture, and code cleanup are important, but they are not stories. A true story delivers measurable business value and usually slices vertically through the system: a bit of GUI, some middleware, and database work.
Keep stories thin and outcome-focused so stakeholders can compare them.
These kinds of stories make planning clearer, negotiation more productive, and every iteration pumps real value.
Discussions for your team
- Do we have backlog items that are actually maintenance, but labeled as stories?
- Do our stories slice vertically or are they layer-bound tasks?
- Can we split our stories even smaller, valuable slices?