doug smith training

Where do your best project ideas come from? When we're creating something new we need lots of new ideas. The ones we bring with us are great, but we might need more. We probably need more. We certainly need more. As the project manager, part of your job is to find the best sources of new ideas. To spark some inspiration, think about where great ideas come from. They don't even have to be related to your project because great ideas from unrelated areas might just get your team going in a spectacularly new and creative direction. Sometimes several unrelated ideas can produce the best solution to your project problem. Get lots of ideas! Why not invite some new ideas into your next project meeting? -- Doug Smith doug smith training: how to achieve your project goals

Does it ever feel like your project has one problem too many? Just when you're about to solve one problem another pops up and keeps you from your goal. Just when we seem to have everything under control something else slips out of view and into trouble. One problem too many just means that it's time to find the help you need. Maybe someone on your project team has the answer. Maybe your project sponsor knows what to do. Maybe the customer has an idea that will take ten problems off the table and help you focus on the goal. Asking for help not only gets you closer to solving those project problems but it also energizes your team. The help is out there. We just need to ask. -- Doug Smith doug smith training: how to achieve your project goals

Do you have a favorite solution? I've misapplied solutions sometimes simply because they were my favorite answers. Need more flexibility? Take all the flexibility you need. Or not. The answer that first pops into our mind is not always the right answer. It's just the answer we know best. That big problem might be easier to solve once we let go of that ineffective solution so deeply imbedded in us. We might be conditioned to pick that idea. We might be in a pattern of dysfunction. We might be wrong. Can you let go of an imbedded solution long enough to make room for something new? You can always come back to your favorite idea if it turns out to be the best one. But it often isn't. Solving project problems usually means creating something completely new. Where do your best NEW ideas come from? -- Doug Smith doug smith training: how to achieve your project goals