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Two Project Managers that Care
This week I’ve gotten inspiration from two project managers. Both are long time associates. One I’m working with now, and one is working on a project nearby. Both are making big successes out of...
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Situational Collaboration
Sometimes idealism runs rampant. At least in my brain. My last post wrapped up with the comment: “we project managers need first to be collaborators through and through.” Just the phrasing makes me...
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Awareness
We’ve been visiting family in Iowa over Thanksgiving. More eating going on than blogging. But, inspiration is everywhere. At Thanksgiving, we recognize what we are thankful for: family and friends,...
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Giving 51% on Your Project
In the last week I spoke with three new project managers. They were all in organizations that practiced limited or no project management. Each was frustrated with how hard it is to be a project...
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Thinking the Unthinkable
The tragedy in Connecticut makes it difficult to write about finding what can go right on our projects. It directs our attention to what can go wrong. Horribly wrong. It hurts to think about it....
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What If You Couldn’t Fail?
This post is a holiday gift to all of you who have read my blog during 2012, its first year. The blog has been a gift to me. I’ve been able to sort out what’s important, what works for me, … Continue...
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Don’t Leave People Out of Your Project’s Scope
Dan Rockwell’s year end posts are getting me ready for the New Year. This one reinforces the part of “the other side of risk” that encourages you to consider the project journey and how it will...
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Productive Project Assessment
As my career evolves, I’ve moved from project manager roles to roles where I oversee and assess projects. I think doing this productively requires balancing cold objectivity with optimism and...
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Redefining Yourself
“You are never too old to set another goal or dream a new dream…” C.S. Lewis A constant theme in my work life has been to redefine myself every 4 years or so. I’m not sure why it happens, but …...
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Start Fresh; Don't Fix
Reblogged from Leadership Freak: Toddlers who stumble and fall aren’t broken; they need practice. Fixing is a backward-facing activity that centers on mistakes and weaknesses. Move forward; don’t fix....
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Moving from Planning to Doing on Your Project
I’m almost three weeks into a new job. This job requires me to build stronger relationships between a complex business environment and its IT providers. No one has had this same job for this business...
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Managing Project Starship
Dr. Mae Jemison, Principal of the 100 Year Starship project (and former astronaut), was asked by New York Times columnist, Dennis Overbye, if she would go on a lifetime voyage to the stars. She said...
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Do You Want Your Project Manager To Be Like Bobby Knight?
I woke up to NPR this morning and listened to an interview with Bobby Knight, the famous college basketball coach. The interview discussed his new book “The Power of Negative Thinking.” To sum it up,...
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Bring “Wow” to Your Projects
Reading “Leadership Freak” on Monday was reaffirming. Dan Rockwell wrote about leaders who achieve great success by setting a vision, bringing in good people, and getting out of the way. His primary...
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Happy Families, Happy Projects
For the past several years I’ve encouraged all my clients, and now my co-workers, to adopt agile methods on their projects. I also encourage it for any work, like software maintenance work, that can...
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Pull is Better Than Push
I’ve been thinking a lot this week about how organizations change. The bottom line seems to be that successful change comes from people pulling it in. You can’t push change in. Do our projects focus...
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Positive Psychology and Perfect Project Outcomes
Finding the other side of risk – opportunities for perfect outcomes – isn’t done in lieu of finding risks; it’s the complement. Science tells us that this is true and necessary. I’m getting ready...
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The IKEA Effect – Projects Made with Love
Maybe the secret ingredient to project success is love. After all, isn’t anything made with love more special to the maker and the receiver? Maybe someone should do a study on this. Wait, someone...
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Improvisational Projects
Project management success can be as much improvising and adapting as it is planning and controlling. Opportunities to find what can go right constantly present themselves. How to effectively improvise...
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