Staying focused

If you need a little motivation, check out Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s video on YouTube where he simply says: “Focus.”

Sometimes, a little reminder to focus goes a long way—especially when it comes to finding value in our work.

I wanted to start this blog with a smile and a nod to the importance of focus because it ties perfectly into my latest discussion on SPaMcast. (If you want to listen in, here’s the QA Focus episode and more great interviews.)

In that conversation, we dove into what it really means to focus on quality in QA—and how far is too far. It’s a tricky question because “enough focus” changes depending on your organization’s appetite for risk. Even then, the line is rarely clear-cut.

So much of it comes down to company culture—how you treat your products, your clients, and your approach to risk. I love the analogy Elisabeth Hendrickson uses in Explore It!: Reduce Risk and Increase Confidence with Exploratory Testing:

Testing is like casting a fishnet. The tighter the mesh, the more you’ll catch—but it takes a lot more effort to pull through the water. Widen the mesh, and you’ll only catch the big stuff, letting smaller issues slip by. Depending on what you’re testing, you might need that tight net—sometimes, lives are at stake if something slips through.

But here’s where culture and leadership matter most. Great leaders create an environment where teams can move that net faster and more efficiently—by investing in the right tools, encouraging collaboration across disciplines, and supporting everyone to solve problems together.

Let’s connect and discuss practical ways to cultivate a culture that values quality without burning out your team. Reach out at jberriault@berriaultandassociates.com, and let’s make quality a team sport.