I am a believer in the power of project management.
As a professional project manager for nearly twenty years I have witnessed project success drive business results. I have also proven that project management can change lives and help achieve personal transformation. Now I am sharing some practical tips and techniques that you can use to help achieve your own personal goals, live your best life and become a PM Believer.
The Right Plan, Your Plan
Last week I mentioned that your plan is critically important to the success of your project, so let’s get started with the planning process. But we need to start strong by doing what’s right for you instead of taking shortcuts.
By definition, all projects create a unique product or service so all projects are different. This means that there is no one-size-fits-all plan that works for every project. Plans need to fit the project, the environment and, most importantly, the project team doing the work.
Likewise, your personal goal is unique to you and your situation so your project requires a custom fit plan. Recycling somebody else’s plan, approach or advice may not fit your situation. Following a plan that doesn’t fit your project, or that you don’t feel a sense of ownership over, is the recipe for failure.
Building the right plan for your project starts with boundaries. What are you willing to do and what aren’t you willing to do to reach your goal? Defining your boundaries first is like starting with the corners and edges when assembling a jigsaw puzzle; the frame your work and all of the other pieces fit inside.
I will share a personal example from my weight loss project that I discuss in detail in my book.
I started by determining the things I am not open to considering. First, I was not going to adopt some fad diet or to consider surgery, so those things were clearly ‘out of scope’ for my project. I had also decided that I am not willing to give up anything that I really enjoyed though I was willing to adjust quantity and frequency of indulging. I knew that I was not going to be giving up dining out because that was incompatible with my lifestyle.
With those boundaries defined I was able to construct a five-point plan for the things that I was going to do to pursue my project. This let me build a plan that was true to myself and compatible with my life which ultimately led to tremendous success.
A similar approach can work for your personal goal projects too and can prevent you from choosing a plan that doesn’t fit your project.
Are you ready to be a PM Believer?
Do you have a goal and are ready to create a plan to get to the finish line? To crush your goal, you need the right plan. That means it has to be right for you. Build the right plan for you, own it and follow it to success!
How have you applied project management for your personal success? Tell me about it at OperationMelt.com and make sure to join my email list to have updates delivered to your inbox weekly.
Make sure to help your friends achieve their goals by sharing this post on your social network and by following me on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.
Want to know more about how I changed my life with project management? Pick up your copy of my book Operation Melt: How I Used Life-Changing Project Management to Lose Over 100 Pounds In Under a Year.
About Operation Melt
Operation Melt started as a blog to share my personal transformation and weight loss story. After achieving success with that goal, Operation Melt has evolved into a platform to help inspire, motivate and equip people to achieve their own personal and professional goals so they can live their best lives. My vision is to build a world where no goal ever dies of loneliness.
