Project Management Made Easy!
Remember the last time you were sitting in a meeting and a new big idea emerged...and you saw everyone staring at you to take it on? It’s feeling like you got on a dark stage and there’s a spotlight on you. Here’s your shot for the big solo and you are ready to grab the mic and shine. This project is going to be great!
Then you go back to your office, close the door and have that sense of overwhelming panic - what did I get into? This is too big, too important and too different from anything I’ve done before...what do I do?
We’ve previously looked at how to start, but let’s dig deeper into how to prepare yourself for success by coming up with a bulletproof strategy that’s at the heart of every great operator.
Break. It. Down.
That’s it - the big secret of incredible success. Sounds easy, right? Let me break it down for you - it’s a lot more difficult to do than it seems.
Let’s assume that this is not a typical humdrum project, but a key piece of incredible importance to the organization. Here are are ten steps that should form a blueprint for success:
Step 1 : Take A Walk
Bring some friends on your walk if you want.
That’s right, get up and take a walk. Bonus points if you can find a new route around the office or outside. Extra bonus points if you go to lunch at a restaurant you haven’t been to.
Just the action of moving and seeing new things is going to help you get your full attention in the next step. It will also help you get yourself calm and focused. If it’s a really big project or you are still aren’t in a good zone, don’t force it - go to the gym, do some yoga, play with your dog or do whatever you need to get your nerves calmed.
Step 2 : Turn It Off, Crank It Up
When you are ready to start and have some fresh oxygen in your body, it’s time to get to it. Find a comfortable place and the right time. Turn your phone off and make sure you won’t be interrupted by calls, office visitors, family, pets or other attention stoppers.
What this looks like will be different for everyone - for example, I know my peak time to jam on work like this is approximately 1 in the morning. Sometimes closer to 2 AM. My wife and dogs are sleeping, the house is completely quiet, the windows are dark and email is dead. I put on some comfortable sweat pants and usually pick some non-distracting music to keep me company. I’ve gone through this process so many times that I have a sneaking suspicion that my mind and body know...it’s go time.
Step 3 : Go Deep and Envision It
Use your favorite tool to start the storm. Sometimes I use Word, other times I’ll go old school with a pen and fresh pad of paper. Start brainstorming everything that needs to get done by looking at the big categories - Marketing, Communications, Finances, Product, Technology, etc. Then start to envision what needs to get done in each of those categories. Or go for a complete stream of consciousness of what needs to get done. The key here is to break it down into specific, clear and individual tasks.
Close your eyes and picture the project unfolding. Don’t leave things out - get as much down as you can. Keep picturing the work getting done and keep documenting what needs to happen.
This step is the foundation, so don’t try to rush it or you will miss key aspects. Review what you’ve done and keep passing through the vision of the project. Keep reviewing. Keep adding. Keep drilling down.
When you have a great list, take a break. Walk away, visit a website you haven’t visited in awhile or play a quick online game...something to reset yourself. For me, this is usually reading news about the great things going on with my Northwestern Wildcats teams or playing a few rounds of the ever addicting Dulp.
Step 4 : Organize and Clarify
Get back into the comfort zone and start by grouping and organizing. Usually these are around the key headers or departments/activities involved, or chronologically. Don’t think too much about this organization - as long as it makes sense, and starts to get easier for you to sort and move around the tasks.
Next, go through each task and write a description of what the task is and the final deliverable. Here’s some of the magic of this step- if you need more than 2-3 succinct sentences to communicate the task to anyone invested in the project without extra explanation...break it down. That one task should and could be many tasks.
For example, you may think that the task “Create a Landing Page” is enough, but when you start to describe what goes into it, you should realize that there are many more steps - general page design, creating copy, finding images and videos, designing forms, coding, working with IT to integrate or coming up with a new domain, finding hosting….and the list goes on.
At this stage, also note when you or others will have to be pulled in for approvals and add those steps in. Keep reviewing the entire project and envisioning it getting done. Did you catch everything you need to? You sure? Go through it one more time, then put it aside, go to sleep or do whatever you can to take your mind off the incredible work you did.
Step 5 : Buying Buy-In Through Feedback + Breathing
Now you should be ready to let your beautiful work shine. Find some of the experts in specific areas that will either be affected by the project or that may be working on the work. You can even bring in people who may have done similar work but may not be engage on this specific projects. Try to make this a small group of 2-3 others at most.
Walk through the project with them individually or as a group - and tell them the story of the project. Go through the steps. Have them stop and interrupt you with questions or steps you overlooked. This especially becomes important if you haven’t worked on specific tasks and inadvertently misrepresented what needs to get done.
Don’t get defensive of your work- show them you are taking their feedback to heart and adjusting your plan. Not only will this strengthen your plan, but when you ask them for help on your next project they know you aren’t wasting their time. It also will get you invited to give them similar feedback on work they have...and the more you learn about areas you aren’t an expert in the better rounded you become.
After you finish this step, make the changes and again step aside and let it breathe.
Step 6 : Resources, Feedback, Buy-In
Jump back in, it’s time for the fun. Start to use whatever project management tool is appropriate. This varies by your comfort with tools AND even more importantly, to the comfort that your team. Like every tool, if it’s not used it’s garbage. It’s better to use a whiteboard than Microsoft Project if that is what your team will use. Likewise, if your team is addicted to using technology, don’t try to force them to use paper reports.
In your project management tool, start to add in the resources you need - people, time and money.
- People : Only choose ONE person as the task lead even if others will be involved - this allows everyone to know who is accountable for that work getting done.
- Time: Plan out the schedule, making sure that it flows appropriately so that dependent tasks have time to get done before moving on. Also use realistic timeframes taking into account people’s other work, the inevitable slack for unexpected delays and pay attention to time needed for approvals or decision making points. Realize that people love you and this project, but it’s not always going to be the first thing on their plate when you want it to be.
- Money: At what point will there be costs? Estimate those costs over the timeframe of the project. That will allow you to make sure that everyone is onboard with those spends. Getting stopped up waiting to get budget approvals or a check cut is a frustration that can absolutely be avoided.
Start to wrap it all together with a nice looking package that can be shared and understood. You want to make sure that if someone outside of your project team looks at this incredible plan they get it without you walking through it. You may be surprised how quickly a nicely planned project makes its rounds - prepare for this inevitability.
Step 7 : Sharing is Caring
Now it’s time to share it out. You can start with the feedback group if you want to go over the full plan again with a fine tooth comb. When it’s ready, bring in the team in groups or individually to walk them through the plan, their role in it and how it’s going to play a key part in the bigger picture. You can make incremental changes through these conversations, but don’t stray too far. Everyone will always want more time, money and people - at some point you will need to stick to your guns and finish the plan.
Next be sure to “socialize” this with other stakeholders. This is part informational and part showing off how ready you are for this project. Get this extra buy-in to your vision and you will find more resources available in future projects as people see that you are a project rockstar.
Step 8 : Finally - JUST DO IT.
Now comes the hard part- executing. Make sure the tasks are getting done well and moving along. Adjust as you need to, but for every delay you will have to find another area to hustle. Keep measuring and tracking progress.
Here’s a place for a leadership gold star - make sure to celebrate victories both big and small. When big milestones are hit, make sure everyone gets lunch or a margarita. When small tasks are done, or when big obstacles are overcome, dole out high fives, handshakes or a surprise cup of coffee. Celebrating both big and small will help keep people excited about the work and an understanding that even the smallest of insignificant tasks matter.
Also be sure to communicate throughout the process. This means giving good/bad/ugly updates to folks outside the team, letting teams know when work is coming so they can be prepared to work, and for it and other stakeholders that are anxiously anticipating delivery.
Step 9 : Deliver + Analyze
The fun comes when you get to finish the project. Everyone that comes in contact with the final deliverable should be giddy with the work as you included them in various stages (you remembered to include everyone earlier, right?). And what do you know, the project is exactly what was needed, you delivered it under budget, on time and the work is of the highest quality. Win. Win. Win.
After the excitement and exhaustion wears off, take a step back and go through the past days (weeks? months?) and see where your plan got sidetracked. Get a firm understanding of what went wrong (and what went right!) so you are ready when you get called up to the plate again.
Step 10 : Play It Again, Sam!
Guess what? When you do this and do it well, the opportunities will continue to come and the projects will become larger, more complex and more exciting, so get ready to crank it up and crank it out!
A few more observations about the challenge of planning and executing flawless and value-added projects before you go forth and make it so.
These steps seems like they are long, dreadful and laborious. In reality, as you get better with the process it will go quicker and become second nature. Depending on the complexity of the project and size of the stakeholder group, you should be able to get from the starting line through beginning of execution in the matter of a few days. That said, don’t skip steps, try to rush the process or get cute with it. Cutting corners will only bite your ass in the end.
The best news is that when you become proficient in this art, you will make it look easy. If you look at the best operators you know, they are naturally breaking big ideas down into manageable chunks without thinking about it. You will find that this philosophy follows you into your personal life as well. It will help you devour challenges with a ninja-like quickness and zen-like mindfulness in all you do.
Plan the work. Work the plan.
This was written while listening to the vinyl album:
A Tribe Called Quest
The Love Movement (1998)