Pairing without steamrolling
Two keyboards, one mission. Small facilitation habits keep paired testing from turning into a lecture.
Pair testing fails when one voice narrates every click while the other watches silently. Swap the driver role every ten minutes, even if it feels mechanical at first. The swap forces both people to articulate intent.
Agree on a charter before touching the build. If the mission creeps, pause and rewrite it on a sticky note visible to both. Creep is normal; unmanaged creep wastes trust.
When you disagree on severity, capture both interpretations in the ticket and let triage decide. Debates belong in comments with timestamps, not in whispered side conversations that the rest of the team cannot see.
End with a three-line summary each person signs off on. That tiny ritual prevents mismatched memories later in the week.