Be the First to Fill the Vacuum that Nature Hates
Aristotle stated that nature abhors a vacuum. His argument was that nature hates the idea of empty space and will fill it with whatever is available. While this theory was later contested, there is a valuable lesson for Project Managers today when it comes to providing information about a project.
What’s that? Be sure to manage the “communication space” that envelops your project. It’s your job to keep that space filled with facts and as many positive points of reference as possible.
How to Choose Which Ball to Drop
A new year is here, and with it, the ushering in of the latest strategies, initiatives, and projects to kick off the first quarter. You may quickly find yourself unable to juggle everything, despite your best efforts to prioritize, delegate, and negotiate. One of those balls will drop; the question is, which one?
Easy. Ask yourself which project, task, or initiative is a rubber ball and then drop that one.
Let me explain.
3 Tips for Successfully Working Remote
“I have only one rule,” my manager said. “Don’t go dark on me.” Our office was scheduled to close at the end of the year, and everyone would soon be disbanded to the suburbs of Atlanta to begin working remotely. His guidance meant that when he needed to get ahold of team members during normal business hours, we would be available.
Fair enough.
Some made it work, others didn’t. Those who did enjoyed the benefits of working from home; those who didn’t were eventually asked to leave the company.
Which brings us to the question…how can I make others feel like I’m in the office right next to them, when working remotely? Consider the following suggestions.
Are You Falling Victim to Performance Review “Bait”?
Movies that appear to be produced for the sole purpose of Academy Award nomination are called “Oscar Bait.” One strategy of movie producers in this genre is to release the film late in the year, just in advance of the Oscar season. Why? The fresher a film is in the mind of voters theoretically increases its chances of winning an award.
Similarly, with annual employee review season right around the corner, we may find ourselves guilty of succumbing to Annual Performance Review "Bait.” Employees do not intentionally bait you by doing their best work at the end of the year, but rather, it is just our natural inclination to remember what happened most recently.
The Single Greatest Quality a Project Manager Must Possess
There are all kinds of skills, qualities, and talents you must possess to be a successful project manager. You need to be able to see the big picture, break it down into smaller pieces, and assemble it back together again. You need to be a leader, motivator, inspector and persuader. But, all of these qualities mean nothing unless you have…
Credibility.
Credibility is defined as the quality of being trusted, convincing, or believable. Trust me when I say there is a lot of trust me in project management. Maybe the following will sound familiar:
Change Your Lighting, Change Your Influence
Warning: I’m going classic “7 Habits” here...
Stephen Covey talked about a Circle of Concern and a Circle of Influence. The larger Circle of Concern is everything that worries you, but you CAN’T do anything about. The smaller Circle of Influence is everything that worries you that you CAN do something about.
Understanding these two circles is why I bring the same small desk lamp with me to any new job or position.
Let me explain...
3 Ways to Reduce Friction When People Work with You
n a previous article we asked, “How Much Friction Do You Generate When People Work with You?” The net of the article was that people come to you because they want to transition from their current state to a different state. For example, from not being trained to being trained, from not having a report to having a report, or from not having a product to having a product. The easier it is to transition from one state to the next (aka low friction) the higher the chance that someone will want to work with you or continue to bring their business your way.
So, what are some ways you can reduce friction either personally, departmentally, or company-wide?
How Much Friction Do You Generate At Work?
Videos from the cockpit of the space shuttle re-entering Earth’s atmosphere are amazing! As the shuttle reduces its speed, 'kinetic friction,' the resistance created by two objects sliding against each other, generates extreme heat, intense light, and turbulence. This resistance makes for a spectacular sight-and-sound experience and is key to slowing down or stopping an object altogether.
That’s great for the space shuttle, but in the workplace, resistance is not so great. Are you doing things personally or are there departmental systems and processes in place that unwittingly generate heat and slow others down?
A Template to Help Prioritize, Organize, and Delegate
I have a confession to make…
I’ve been struggling with an addiction for years and just can’t seem to break it.
It’s kind of embarrassing to say, but I still use pen and paper. Yes, it’s true. I STILL USE PEN AND PAPER!
Now, don’t get me wrong. It’s not like I’m a Luddite or anything. I love technology. I enjoy trying out new apps, gadgets, or processes for being more productive (see 3 Great Tools to Increase Productivity). But I use pen and paper to write my plans for the week, prioritize what’s important, and to remind me what to talk with others about.
Find Important Messages in Seconds by Color Coding Your Email
Receiving hundreds of emails a day is no longer the exception but rather the norm. They range from critically important to a litany of one-word replies such as “thanks” and “ok.” Sometimes you can block out 30 minutes to plow through your inbox, but sometimes you can’t.
For those days that you can’t, there is a way to zero in on emails that need your immediate attention, such as those from your manager, customers, or anyone else that needs a quick response.
3 Reasons to not "Phone It In" When You Are a Remote Worker
I remember watching The Jetsons and thinking how cool it would be if we could video call like them. Jane, Judy, or Elroy would pop up on a desktop screen and talk to George like they were in the same room. Well, the future is now, and for the past 10 years that technology has been commonplace.
Do you take advantage of all that video has to offer you as a remote worker? Or, do you hide behind visual anonymity and just dial in to company meetings? Sure, phoning in is tempting. You don’t have to worry about your face on a big-screen JumboTron at the office. But, there are some very real benefits to using video.
But We've Always Done It That Way!
A young girl once asked her mother why she cut off the ends of the roast before putting it in the pan. “That’s a great question,” her mother said. “I’m not really sure, it’s something my mother always did. Why don’t you ask her?”
So, the girl asked her grandmother the same question and was told, “Y’know, I’m not really sure, it’s something my mother always did. Why don’t you ask her?”
When she called and asked her great grandmother, the mystery was solved. “Oh, that’s easy,” she was told. “It’s because the pan we had was too small to hold the whole roast. We had to cut off the ends to make it fit!”
A Technology Lesson Learned from a Salesperson
“Nope, we can’t do that,” I said curtly to the potential client. I knew my team would not be able to fulfill their request, and as my colleague and I sat in that meeting, I prided myself in not committing to something our company couldn’t deliver. After all, I was the person responsible for delivering the technology that would be sold.
“Wait, wait, wait…” my colleague, ever the sales pro, said. “We may not be able to do that, but we will be able to do this instead…will that work?”
“Sure, that’ll be just fine,” said the potential, soon-to-be-paying client.
Write Every Email as if it Will Be Read in a Court of Law
One thing I’ve learned over the years is to type every email as if it will be read in a court of law. In those uncomfortable situations when the bottom falls out of a business relationship and companies end up in court…the written word is typically given more credence than people’s memories. That is why it is critical (especially if you are customer facing) to review, re-read, edit, and review again any correspondence that leaves your desktop.
Are You Able to Sleep Through A Storm?
What qualities are necessary for a Project Manager to be successful? Leadership, organization, and being detail-oriented all come to mind. However, for a Project Manager to be truly successful, they need to be able to sleep through a storm.
I heard a story a number of years ago about a Farmer who was looking to hire someone to assist on the farm. He went through interview after interview, but just wasn’t able to find the right person. Eventually he interviewed Pete. The only skill Pete listed on his resume’ was the ability to sleep through a storm.
How to Keep Your Presentations from Going Off-Road
There’s no telling how many presentations we sit through in our careers. Some good, some not so good. What exactly is it that separates the good from the bad? Is it slick graphics, a good story, or cool transitions?
Sure, these all have their place, but what really sets a presentation apart is a high “what’s in your head vs. what’s on the screen” ratio. In other words, what’s in your head about a subject should be exponentially greater than what you present about that same subject.
Why is this important?
3 Great Tools to Increase Productivity
“If all you have is a hammer everything looks like a nail,” goes the old trope. How do we apply it in business? If your problem-solving toolkit is limited, then the solution to very different problems will all look the same.
For example, let’s say you are highly proficient with Excel.
Need a tool to track when people are available across different organizations for an on-site meeting? How about Excel?
Need a tool to identify and prioritize a list of initiatives? Excel should work.
Need a tool to put together a quick project plan? Let’s use Excel.
Stop Thinking of E-Mail and Instant Messaging as Real Communication
ve worked in a number of environments where people are sitting directly across from one another…and days will pass without one word being said. Rather, E-Mail and Instant Messaging have become the proxy for Real Communication.
E-mailing and Instant Messaging have become the preferred method of communication. The vast majority of people really don’t like ‘talking’ to each other. While E-Mail and IM have their place, it has had a negative impact on the quality of communication that is necessary to keep projects on track.
So, when it comes to communication, I’ve found the quality has increased by implementing the suggestions below:
I’m Sorry…I was Mistaken. Thank You.
I almost fell out of my chair the first time I heard this come out of a Project Managers mouth. How could this be? Project Managers don’t make mistakes. They know everything about everything. This guy didn’t, and he ended up being one of the most effective Project Managers I’ve worked with.
There is an assumption that a Project Manager who comes into a new project will immediately know all the details, relationships, nuances and history that make up the project. Some PMs perpetuate this myth by pretending to know all of this information and falling back on strategically placed buzzwords to get them through. This has the potential to backfire, and this Project Manager knew it.
4 Reasons Why the Last 2% of a Project Take Forever to Complete
“Begin with the end in mind” and “It ain’t over until it’s over” are two expressions that highlight the importance of closing a project out and crossing the finish line. It’s your job as a project manager to make sure that deliverables, activities, and processes are in place to ensure a project’s graceful and successful end. But why is it so difficult to bring projects to closure? There are a number of reasons why this is the case: