Project Management: 101 Tips and Tools for Success

CHAPTER 1

Extra Effort

1 THE ROCK

During my career I have been associated with hundreds of projects. Big and small. Complex and simple. Politically sensitive and mundane.

A phenomenon that keeps recurring is that which I call The Rock and I have learnt to ignore it at my peril. Such is the importance of The Rock that I made sure that my project leaders were well versed in its significance and affect. It goes like this.

The universe does not like change and will always attempt to return all things to a state of natural equilibrium. So, when an individual, company or nation attempts to make changes the universe will fight back by placing a Rock or obstacle in its path. I have also found that this Rock is directly proportionate in size to the affect of the change being implemented.

As a Project Manager, you are an agent for change and it is your role to find your way around, under, over or through this daunting obstacle. And it will be daunting, at first glance. Its affect may be to stop you in your tracks in order to maintain the status quo.

This obstacle will not be one which builds up over time, such as a slowly progressing illness. The affects of this type can be managed. Rather, the Rock will be like a knockout blow from a cardiac arrest. No amount of pre-planning and risk assessment could have foreseen it.

Examples include:

• Failure of the power supply just before a key decision is about to be made

• key personnel are struck by mystery illnesses

• trouble makers question the justification of the initiative

• Approved critical resources become unavailable

When the Rock appears it is not the time for the faint-hearted. Rather, it’s time to motivate, sell and, through sheer determination, push forward by whatever means.

A business colleague relates an instance of the appearance of The Rock when he had to make a presentation to government officials who were about to make a significant procurement decision. This was the only opportunity he would have to influence their decision,

He had done all that you would expect by way of preparing contingencies such as spares for all equipment.

The officials were about to enter the room when the power failed – for the whole building! Panic! He was rapidly running out of options when he noticed that the building across the road was lit up.

Without a moment’s thought he procured a long extension cable and hung it across the road – probably contravening all the local building codes. The presentation took place and he was awarded the business.

There are always options. Never let fear of failure paralyse you. By putting that extra effort into your project you, and your team will overcome the Rock and enjoy the glory of a successful implementation.

2 RECORDING EUREKA MOMENTS

How often have you been in a meeting, on a bus or waiting in a queue when a thought floats through your mind, from nowhere? These are sometimes referred to as Eureka Moments or inner nudges. They originate from your subconscious or higher mind when it is trying to speak to you through the clutter of everyday living.

It is all very well getting these moments of earth- shattering revelation. The point is, how do you remember them? The answer is to buy an MP3 player, use your PDA or purchase a dictaphone so that when the information floats through your mind you can quickly make a note to yourself for later action.

It is only a question of discipline. When the mind recognises through repetition that you are going to listen to it, then it will reward you by using this new channel to give you more and more inner nudges.

Discipline is not always convenient. You can be assured that the best nudges will occur in the shower, when discussing your promotion with your manager, or during an intimate discussion with your partner.

The trick here is to acknowledge the mind by making a postulate that you will record the nudge once the current activity is completed. Then again, you need to have the discipline to follow through.

Slowly, slowly you can train your mind, through discipline and you will be rewarded through more and more Eureka Moments.

3 CATNAPS – REFUELLING POINTS

All decent project management literature will emphasize the importance of time management. They make the point that you only have a finite number of hours in the day and you must decide how the tasks are to be managed to achieve completion within the identified time-line.

Although time has no relevance when you are asleep the fact remains that you are governed by the restrictions of a 24-hour clock and a body that needs its energy levels to be regularly replenished.

You may be able to survive on little sleep. You may even be able to survive the occasional all night stint, however depriving yourself of sleep will not enhance your performance. Nevertheless, extended working hours are invariably required in order to maintain the momentum of the project or to deal with the occasional Rock in your path, see Tip 1.

So how can you put in extra effort when you are already working hard? Well, here is a departure from traditional relaxing techniques as I have found that taking short breaks, or catnapping, when combined with meditation, is an effective way to replenish my body when working extended hours.

At the start of the catnap I find somewhere private and reasonably quiet and I tell myself that I want to wake in ten minutes. I then relax my body by putting my attention on a spot between my eyebrows, at the base of my nose then, quietly or silently, I chant a sound or a charged word. There are many sounds you can use however I prefer to use a sound called - HU (pronounced Hew) and is chanted on the out breath.

Remember, the intention is to RELAX! Upon awakening I am invigorated and ready to start the next round of activities. Try it. It sounds strange, it works for me and may for you.

This extra bit of effort will give you many extra hours and relief. It should be recognised however that there is no substitute for sleep and catnapping is only an interim solution.

Although I find the HU to be very effective with catnapping I also find it to be an excellent tool to help me when I want to balance myself or tune-in to what the universe is showing me.

If you want to explore the methods of meditation there are many books you can choose from. All are designed to raise your level of awareness which will enable you to see the world from a higher perspective. This