It’s 2am, a cold chill fills the room but you feel like you’re on fire. Opposite you are four dark, miserable shapes. Like the Dementors in Harry Potter you feel them sucking the energy out of you. One by one they point their icy fingers at you and behind you there’s a bright light being emitted from the wall. It’s a Powerpoint showing an Excel chart. The actuals dance around in a blur while the prognosis figures keep changing by themselves, growing at an exponential rate. As the figures go off the chart and start flying around the room you try to catch them but to no avail. There’s a weight around your legs, which is tied directly to the four shapes who are now pulling you ever closer towards them. As your spine freezes and your fingers go numb the only thing left to do is yell, but no noise comes out. In the void of what you now realize is your steering committee meeting, no one can hear you scream. As you awaken with a jolt, sweat dripping from your brow, you start to think about the upcoming 9am meeting. It’s now 2:30am and you’re wide awake as you hear the clock tick-tock its way to your impending project doom.
Now while there is no one single factor contributing to problems in projects there are a few simple measures you can take to preempt any nightmare scenarios and alleviate the stress of project management.
Don’t over-complicate, get back to basics, know your tolerances
As a project manager most of our professional lives revolve around patterns and shapes that need constant input and analysis. Shapes are your friends and you need to use data and information effectively and to your advantage. And there’s one shape in particular that I’m thinking about: The Triple Constraint (TC). It’s 2015 and many companies and organizations are still starting and running projects without any tangible metrics to base strategic decisions upon. Despite me belonging to the group that believes that a budget, time or scope overrun doesn’t necessarily mean a failed project, you need a simple tool to revert to when discussing decisions with your project sponsor and steering committee.
Before you start any project make sure that you draw the TC on the whiteboard for the project sponsor at the initial project meeting and get them to distribute 100 points across each variable to determine the most important. It creates a simple clarity as well as gives you and the sponsor an indication of expectations and helps to set tolerances. If you get into a situation where the sponsor and/or steering committee is veering off into several different directions, pull them back into focus by drawing the triangle and getting them to either re-prioritize or re-accept the constraints and centre the discussions and decisions based upon the impact on the TC and therefore the project.
Get a second opinion
As with any medical diagnosis you are entitled to a second opinion. The project manager role can be rather lonely so it’s important to get the right support if things aren’t going as planned, because sometimes things might not be as bad as they seem and your nightmares might be unnecessary.
- Get a mentor or coach from within or external to your organization if you feel you need objective advice on an area/areas of your project management and leadership skills.
- Ask another project manager in your organization to proof-read or critically check your documents, plans, presentations or ideas. When we’re stressed we can’t see the woods for the trees. Another pair of eyes from a trusted colleague can help boost your own motivation and moral as well as reduce errors in your own work.
- Ask your project sponsor for a project revision. Yes, that’s right, open up your project to independent, external review, especially if you feel that you’re not getting the right support or input from various parts of the organization. It can help pinpoint project positives and highlight areas that need more attention and improvement. It might be just the thing to get your project back on track.
Build a good relationship with your project sponsor
Chances are that your project sponsor is rather inexperienced in their project sponsor role. This should, however, not be a disadvantage if they burn with a passion for the project they’ve initiated. They can be gently coached and helped by you in their role without them even realizing it. Have the attitude that you want to make them and their project shine. They are ultimately responsible for their project and partially responsible for the project delivery along with you, the project manager, of course. Note the difference.
Have a chat at the beginning of the project (see point 1) and also try to glean from them what motivates them, what type of information they’re looking for from you, whether they play a sport for example. Don’t barge in there with your own list of requirements on what you expect from them. Be exceptionally clear on how you like to work yourself and lead by example.
And if you have the pleasure and opportunity of working with an experienced project sponsor then I extend my warmest congratulations to you. However, the above still applies.
Because when you know you’ve got to go into a difficult meeting with them (and/or the steering committee) you need to know that it will be objective, constructive, respect your profession as a project manager and that they realize that if their project is going to succeed then they need to have your back.
Write a project diary
I’m not talking pages and pages of every thought, word and deed from every day but by taking 15 mins per day and writing a simple diary in table form in e.g. Excel can help you get problems, issues and ideas (let’s not forget the positives) out of your head and down on paper. Not only will it help you when you come to writing your final report but it will also mean that you don’t lie awake trying to remember something you’ve forgotten or that you forget an important interaction with a difficult stakeholder, supplier or even project sponsor.
Furthermore by writing down problems and issues you give yourself time to think and reflect over them and come back to them later…..not at 2:30 am….and maybe realize that there is no real problem or issue. You might even realize that the root cause and solution to the problem is something else entirely thus focusing your energy on the right area.
So next time you wake up from a project nightmare and find it continuing throughout the day don’t despair. A combination of a few small practical activities and support from a colleague or trusted specialist who understands your situation may be all that’s needed to get a good night’s sleep.
Sweet project dreams this Halloween.
