If you are a project manager or running a business, you should always be on the lookout for the different ways in which you are able to keep your skills as fresh and up to date as they possibly can be. At the same time, you should always be looking at ways in which you can improve your skills and keep everybody on board and moving firmly in the same direction. With this in mind, let’s check out one or two of the top ways that you can become a better project manager.
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Create a Plan and Communicate it Properly
While the initial creation of the plan may come from your own head, it can also be useful to get the opinions of people who are in the different sections of the business as they have the expertise that is going to help you out in a big way. This initial plan should take you enough time to ensure that it has been properly thought through. Once you have the plan in place, you then need to take the appropriate time and energy to ensure that you are communicating it properly. Otherwise, you can easily end up in a situation in which problems start to arise for one reason or another. Ultimately, you all need to be on the same page right from the start to ensure that there is no avoidable miscommunication along the way.
Ensure Everyone is in Agreement
The difference between someone who simply dictates that it is their way or the highway and those who want to make the whole process a collaborative effort is huge. Therefore, at this initial stage, you should certainly be canvassing opinions. Of course, this does not mean that you are simply going to bow to every single suggestion and end up in a situation in which you are moving away from your original vision. However, by speaking to people at this stage, it is much more likely that you are going to be able to identify initial concerns and do something about them in one way or another.
Get Advice from Mentor Figures
One of the best ways of improving at anything is by having mentor figures in your life. Perhaps it is project managers that you have worked with before. Alternatively, you may well be able to attend conferences and get specific advice and help in this way. There are all sorts of events that are now taking place, such as PM72 Summit: 72-hour Project Management Event Raising Funds for Malala Fund that can prove to be highly helpful and are certainly more than worth looking into.
Focus on What Went Right and Wrong
Next up on the list, you are certainly going to need to have some real and honest assessment of everything that went right and wrong along the way. Otherwise, it is more than likely that you are going to end up in a situation in which problems start to occur again in the future. Therefore, you certainly need to take the time to have an assessment period as this will really make all the difference in the future.
All of these steps can really help you out in becoming the type of project manager that you have always wanted to be. Without taking them all seriously, it can end up being the case that you are not moving forwards – and you may even end up in a situation in which you are moving in the opposite direction to the one that you intended in a complete manner.
