Do Templates Really Save Time?

Since ProjectConnections is in large part a template repository, that’s the sort of question that would normally raise eyebrows. But I couldn’t help asking it when this cartoon popped up in my Feedly feed last week. The joke here, of course, is the time that was spent compiling the chart. But at the same time, this is a great reminder about proportional effort in your process improvements. Read More»

Has Anyone Seen Fluffy?

How many personality types do you have? If you've ever worked for a large organization, you've probably gone through at least a few different workshops, like DiSC, Enneagram, MBTI, and Keirsey, to name just a few. Depending on who you ask, there may be two, three, four, nine, or sixteen different personality types. (One wag I know likes to say there are two kinds of people: People who believe people can be classified into different types of people, and people who know better.) In my experience, these workshops are a lot like most lessons learned meetings: We attend, document the... Read More»

What Do You Want?

Next time you're stuck in a meeting or conversation that seems to be going around and around (and around and around), stop and ask one simple question: "What do you want out of this?" Here's the catch: The person you're asking is you. Too often, we allow ourselves to get caught up in the adrenaline of proving our case. This is especially true in technical disciplines, where the drive to demonstrate the error -- whatever it is -- may overpower any thought of actually fixing the problem. I've been guilty of this time and again in every imaginable venue. It's... Read More»

Your Project Needs a Better Life

"When was the last time you described a project as being full of life?" Questions like this challenge our perspective on projects and teams, perhaps even the very nature of work. It's from that perspective that Right-Brain Project Management encourages us to review and revise our approach to work, collaboration, and project leadership, beginning with the deliberately provocative opening chapter "What's Wrong with Project Management?" The answer proposed -– a need for maturity, social skills, and passion -– is what Right-Brain Project Management aims to provide. The book is rich with statistics, research, and case studies, which will help even... Read More»

Why Project Kickoffs Matter

A friend of mine said something this morning that inspired me the minute he said it: Teamwork in random teams has to start with you. Most people don't inherently work together unless you say something. Yes, he's a gaming friend, and he was referring to fragging noobs in battlegrounds rather than any sort of project work. (We talk about this sort of thing on Friday mornings. It's OK, though; geek is cool now.) Battlegrounds aside, his offhand remark struck me as the sort of profound conventional wisdom that has to become a blog post. Whether you're talking about orcs vs... Read More»

Blurred Boundaries, or Dodged Responsibility?

"What we've lost, above all, are stopping points, finish lines and boundaries." I see this assertion here and there on a regular basis. Like most modern workers, I gravitate to these remarks, nod sagely, and comment on how that's just like my own workday. Oh, yes, I bounce all over the place, and work long hours, and never get away from the phone. But if I'm really honest with myself, I have to wonder if it's truly new behavior. Is multi-tasking really the result of a uniquely hyper-competitive, hyper-digital environment? Read More»

What Will Help You Sleep Better?

If you find you're lying awake nights worrying about vague, barely identifiable stuff, it's possible that you need some time away—not to relax, but to clear the decks and get some closure. Read More»

Managing an Unexpected Windfall

We tend to spend a lot of time thinking about how to learn from bad situations, but there's just as much to be learned from our success stories. This one, relayed recently by a colleague, illustrates just how important it is not to take anything for granted, and to apply the tools we've been taught no matter what! Sharon had a pipe-dream project. It was something she had proposed off and on for months, but the necessary resources were never available. Specifically, there was no money or time in Marketing for non-essentials, and this idea, while compelling, was considered a... Read More»

"Sure, I'll do that Tuesday." Delete!

How many emails are in your inbox right now? 10? 30? Do I need to add a zero, or even a couple of them, to get in the ballpark? My inbox is absolutely empty as I write this, and I love it. The best part is that I haven't lost any of the information I had floating around. Quite the contrary, I've stored, sorted, and crystallized it into actionable tasks and projects. I got rid of the clutter, and much to my shock and amazement (and that of several teammates), things are starting to get done! This is a new... Read More»

The Difference Between Deadlines and Commitments

Not quite two years ago, in the final stages of our first home purchase, with papers and deadlines and logistics and mindbogglingly large monetary transactions swirling around us, my 4-year-old nephew came for an extended visit. There were compelling reasons, and under the circumstances we were happy to lend a hand. The trouble, of course, is that with so many big things staring one down, the little things can easily slip, and sometimes it's the little things that are most crucial. So when my husband came back from yet another trip to the storage unit, I pleaded with him to... Read More»