Curated Video
What we see... Confirmation Bias | Bite Sized Project Management Thought from John Lubbock
Confirmation bias is dangerous for us, as Project managers. "What we see depends mainly on what we look for" John Lubbock, 1st Baron Avebury (politician and polymath) In this statement, he anticipated the research onto Confirmation Bias...
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Fail Fast: How to Learn from Failure
To become an exceptional Project Manager, you need to learn how to learn from failure. Many years ago, I can upon a helpful phrase: There's no such thing as failure: there's only feedback Suppressing my desire to shout 'of course there's...
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Happy Project: How to Make Your Project a Happier Place
Is your project a happy place? I hope so. But can you deliberately raise morale without going all 'happy-clappy'? Well, yes you can. Lab experiments looked at small, deliberate acts of kindness and generosity. They find people then pay...
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It'll Never Fly: Beat Confirmation Bias
It'll Never Fly' How often have you heard words like that at the start of your project? Or maybe you've heard yourself saying them. If so, you're in danger of 'Confirmation Bias'. If you've ever said 'it'll never fly', you're in good...
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How to Hold a Daily Stand-up Meeting
The Daily Stand-up Meeting is a part of many Agile Project Management approaches. But in my experience, the idea pre-dates Agile. I bet the pyramid builder gathered around the wineskin at the start of every day! But, the two specific...
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What is the Gemba ...and Going to the Gemba?
Gemba is a Japanese term that means ‘actual place’. It’s a word for a concept that we all recognize, but for which there is no word in the English language. ‘Going to the gemba’ means heading for where the work is done and the value is...
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Destroying my Enemies | Bite Sized Project Management Thought from Abraham Lincoln
Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends with them?' This quote from US President, Abraham Lincoln, reminds us of the value of positive engagement with our project stakeholders and the importance of handling resistance in a...
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Why Resistance is a Good Thing
Nobody likes resistance, right? Well, despite this, it's actually a good thing. Let me explain... There’s a simple model of resistance to change that you may be familiar with. It’s based on the work of Elizabeth Kübler Ross and Virginia...
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The Project Control Paradox
Project Control is an important part of our discipline as Project Managers. But it carries within it a paradox... Anyone who has been to any of my live events will know that I have a few project management 'catch phrases' that I...
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I am not afraid of storms... The Value of the PM Body of Knowledge
There is a real value to the Project Management body of knowledge. And I am not referring to a specific body of knowledge, like the PMI's or APM's bodies of knowledge, the PMBOK Gude and the APMBoK. I mean the general body of project...
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Conflict in Project Management: It's Your Fault
Conflict seems to be a big part of a Project Manager's life... So, you'd better learn to suck it up. And you also need to learn to handle it effectively... and with respect. But you can do better The ideal position is to make conflict a...
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Time to Think: The Next Bend Process
The biggest question I hear from experienced project managers who are not yet at the top of their career is: 'How can I get more time to think?' It's easy for a project manager to get overly tied up with your day-to-day project issues....
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What are Project Benefits?
Project benefits are the reason we do projects. Deliverables are only of any use to the extent that they also realize benefits. Benefits are measurable improvements that are the outcome of a change your project creates and which your...
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There are No Endings | Bite Sized Project Management Thought from Hilary Mantel
The wonderful British novelist, Hilary Mantel, wrote 'There are no endings. If you think so, you are deceived as to their nature.' In this short, bite-size video, I reflect on what that quote means for project manager and the discipline...
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Trusted Project Manger: 5 Habits for How to Build Trust
You want to be a Trusted Project Manager. So you will need to cultivate five habits to build trust. Everyone needs to feel they can trust their Project Manager. And you want them to trust you. So, what do you do to earn their trust? Of...
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To Be in the Majority | Bite Sized Project Management Thought from G H Hardy
The exceptional early 20th Century mathematician, GH Hardy, said 'It is not worth an intelligent man’s time to be in the majority. By definition, there are already enough people to do that.' In this short, bite-size video, I reflect on...
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Whether a Person is Wise | Bite Sized Project Management Thought from Naguib Mahfouz
The 20th Century Egyptian writer and 1988 Nobel Laureate for Literature, Naguib Mahfouz, said 'You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions.' In this short, bite-size video, I...
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What is Configuration Management?
When we refer to the configuration of a system, we mean the technical description of a system and how its component parts inter-connect. So, what is Configuration Management? We define Configuration Management in our free PM Glossary:...
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Getting the Best Value from Experience (and the Myth of 10,000 hours)
There is a Myth... It's the myth of 10,000 hours. But how can you get the best value from experience? I'll tell you. In his book, 'Outliers' (https://geni.us/UQKsq8N), Malcolm Gladwell discusses how 10,000 hours of practice is what it...
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Astonish Your Stakeholders... with a Stakeholder Listening Plan
You're familiar, I'm sure, with the idea of a Stakeholder Communication Plan. This is often a schedule of activities designed to get your project message out. But it can easily miss out something vital... Why not create a Stakeholder...
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Committing to Be a Professional Project Manager
At what point do you become a Professional Project Manager? I started wondering this in a meeting with a client. We were talking about different people in their organization. Let's start with an easier question... Professionalism is easy...
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Waterfall vs Agile: The Big Principle at Stake
If you are subscribed to a few Project Management feeds, blogs, or YT channels (like this one), you're probably seeing it too... I am talking about the constant flow of 'Waterfall vs Agile' or 'Agile versus Waterfall' arguments. They...
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Good Meetings don't Happen by Chance
Sometimes the life of a project manager seems to be a constant trudge from one meeting to the next. And it doesn’t help that you are responsible for leading some of them! So, creating a good project meeting should be important to you....
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Multiple Projects: How Can I Manage Five Projects at Once?
How Can I Manage Five Projects at Once?' I hear a variation on this question a lot. It could be three; it could be ten... Multiple Projects: five will do. There is a simple answer. And, I'm afraid, it's glaringly obvious. Yet it's no...