This is the seventh in a series of Blogs on personal management and how to live a life worth living and be happy. Using project management techniques.
South Wales Valleys.
The picture above looks like a scene from the industrial revolution of the 19th century - those dark satanic mills. However I took the picture in 1989 whilst working as Project Manager for the environmental charity - the Merthyr and Cynon Groundwork Trust.
It was my first job that used project management techniques to help restore the degraded environment of the South Wales coalfield communities. Notwithstanding the ravages of the industrial revolution and the iron and coal industries, the valleys of South Wales are beautiful as they descend from the hills of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Wild open moorland on the hill tops, remnants of hanging oak woodlands on the valley sides, with industrial and urban areas on the valley floor. It's a striking landscape of contrasts.
The job purpose was to implement locally based projects that helped restore the environment in a way that supported the social and economic development of communities that were suffering as a consequence of the end of the coal industry. For better or worse most coal mines were closed in the 1980's and the above smokeless fuel works closed in the 1990's. There was social, economic and environmental deprivation.
It's where I started learning project management techniques as we implemented landscaping, conservation, and educational projects. They are techniques I still use today to help achieve objectives and meet personal expectations. Using project management techniques are a useful way to help manage those things that are important to you. They are an effective way to help you achieve your expectations.
Previously I've used the phrase
DON'T AGONISE, ORGANISE!
Project management is a useful way of thinking, helpful in getting organised, and then getting things done. If we get things done that we're passionate about we tend to end up happier.
There are sophisticated project management tools but for most people trying to undertake a personal project there's a few simple resources that can help organise your planning and actions.
So what is a project? A project:
- has start and finish points
- has a specified goal/outcome, or has SMART Objectives (see previous blog)
- is non routine
- involves uncertainty
- requires coordination
So it's not about the routine things such as the shopping or paying the bills, it is about substantive things that will bring about change in your life and through this make you happier when achieved.
I want to focus on a few useful tools that can help organise personal projects:
- the mnemonic P.A.R.M. - Plan, Act, Reflect and Modify.
- the project triangle
- Gantt charts
There are many, many other project management tools and resources, but for most personal projects keep it simple.
P.A.R.M. This gives an overview of the project process. When planning a project you need to define what you're trying to achieve and in the previous blog I've suggested SMART objectives as a useful way to do this.
Before you start the project, i.e. before you act, it's useful to reflect on the 3 main forces that define the success of your project - time, cost and quality. The Project Triangle.
In any project you're balancing these 3 forces. If you're in a rush you may have to pay more or have a project of a lesser quality. If money and time are not a problem then you can have the best quality. The project triangle is a useful way of helping to plan a project and to reflect on how well it's going - you may need to modify your expectations as you learn from doing it.
Gantt charts are bar charts that schedule project activities. They're glorified lists that help you organise and sequence project tasks. They break the task down into small manageable bits so that you can measure progress and not get daunted. Sometimes something you want to do seems so big that you never start it. Breaking it down into very small parts, and just focusing on the next one that needs to be done, is an effective way of getting the whole done. A Gantt chart helps organise this.
There are three basic parts:
- a time line, with deadlines, and a completion point.
- a list of activities
- a bar for each activity, that represents each activities duration.
You can also add some optional things:
- a column for 'Resource' - this is usually human resource, i.e. who going to do the activity. Very important if you're collaborating with others on a project.
- the dependencies between activities. What can't you start before something else is finished.
- the critical activities. What do you have to do, what would be nice to do.
If it's a simple project then a sheet of paper can be used to create a Gantt chart. Use a pencil and eraser to modify it. I also use a spreadsheet to create Gantt charts for more complicated projects and, as an example, I've attached one for the establishment of a supported employment service.
I've argued that meeting your expectations is a way of being happy, because it helps you lead a life worth living. Using project management techniques, especially a Gantt chart, is a way of ensuring the things you want to do and are passionate about, get done.
In the next blog I'm going to talk about dialectics.
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