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How Project Managers Waste Their Time - Avoid Doing These 13 Things
Project Management

How Project Managers Waste Their Time: Avoid Doing These 13 Things!

Time is money, they say, but it’s not entirely true. While I understand the intent behind this expression, there is a gaping hole in the theory. Time is worth MUCH more than money for the majority of us. Time is the only resource we can’t buy any more of. We all get the same amount of hours in each day, but none of us can ever get time back. The positive response to all of this? Make the best use of your time as you possibly can! This goes for work and personal life alike. As far as work is concerned, let’s talk about how Project Managers waste their time. If you’re looking to make the most of your time at work, avoid doing these 13 things!

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Pat Finnegan December 19, 2019
Do We Really Need To Work 8 Hours A Day? The Truth On Full-Time Jobs
Career Planning

Do We Really Need To Work 8 Hours A Day? The Truth On Full-Time Jobs

The 40-hour workweek is the hallmark of full-time employment in many countries. Five days per week, eight hours per day with weekends off. This experience has been so well-engrained in our society that many of us never question it. After all, we want to be hard workers. We want a ‘real job’. If we don’t work an eight hour day, some of us think we didn’t work hard enough. The answer? It depends. What are we doing during that time? How much effort are we putting in? How efficient are we working? All of these questions lead us to an even bigger question – do we really need to work 8 hours a day? Today, we’re exploring the truth about full-time employment.

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Pat Finnegan December 17, 2019
7 Simple, Effective Ways To Get Ahead As A Project Manager
Project Management

7 Simple, Effective Ways To Get Ahead As A Project Manager

We talk a lot on this website about whether Project Managers are born or made, and we always arrive at the same answer – there’s elements of both in the best P.Ms out there. That being said, the most polar opposites of ‘born’ Project Managers out there can still boost their skill levels tremendously through learning and experiences. Said another way – there’s a strong possibility of success for even the most unnatural P.Ms. In this article, we’ll be exploring 7 simple, effective ways to get ahead as a Project Manager! Let’s dive in.

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Pat Finnegan December 10, 2019
Going To The Office On The Weekend - 5 Situations When It's Beneficial
Project Management

Going To The Office On The Weekend: 5 Situations When It’s Beneficial

Let’s be real here – nobody wants to work on the weekends. Weekends are supposed to be the time where you spend time on anything BUT work. Most of us don’t even want to think about work during the weekend, let alone go to the dreaded office. In modern times, though, we’re juggling more and more on a daily basis. Our personal and work lives are merging more than ever. Most of us work more on average than we did in the past, too! In this article, we’re discussing going to the office on the weekend, and 5 situations when it’s beneficial. Let’s dive in.

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Pat Finnegan November 27, 2019
Project Management Efficiency Tricks & Hacks: 10 Go-To Techniques
Project Management

Project Management Efficiency Tricks & Hacks: 10 Go-To Techniques

Project management largely revolves around problem-solving, strategy and conscientiousness, but let’s get real – we also want to have a life. We desire positive outcomes and success for our projects, but we also want to leave at a reasonable hour, too. When it comes to efficient project management, ‘work smarter, not harder’ is the name of the game. We must put in enough effort to get the job done right, but we also need to monitor the time and energy it’s taking to get there. Today, we’re talking about 10 must-know project management efficiency tricks and hacks!

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Pat Finnegan November 6, 2019
A Project Manager's First Day On The Job: Focus On These 3 Essentials
Project Management

A Project Manager’s First Day On The Job: Focus On These 3 Essentials

The first day on the job can be nerve-wracking for a Project Manager at any skill level. Working in a new environment comes with all sorts of challenges that we get hit with simultaneously. Between new coworkers, a different workplace culture and an impression to make, it’s easy to become overwhelmed when we start at a new job – let alone taking on our new project! That’s a whole other conversation, which we’ll have in this article. Today, we write about a Project Manager’s first day on the job, and the three essential things they should focus on first!

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Pat Finnegan October 29, 2019
How Do You Manage Multiple Projects Effectively
Construction Process

How Do You Manage Multiple Projects Effectively? Our Top 10 Techniques

In a perfect world, a Project Manager would be given exactly one project at a time. We could put all of our attention and energy into getting the project completely finished before we even think about the next one. As you and I both already know, though, this world is far from perfect. People leave or get fired. New project opportunities pop up out of nowhere. Projects get delayed well beyond their original timeframe. Companies stretch resources. Busy times call for juggling. Some projects are just too small to require a full-time P.M. If you work in project management long

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Pat Finnegan October 15, 2019
Managing Projects With A Short Attention Span
Project Management

Managing Projects With A Short Attention Span: 6 Must-Do Habits

Is your attention span similar to flipping through TV stations? Are thoughts racing, fast and ever-flowing? If so, you may have what some call a ‘short attention span’ – that is, your attention is constantly drawn to every thought or distraction and remains on any one subject for a short amount of time. This article is not written in judgement – I have this issue myself! Guess what? Over the years, I really haven’t changed either. While meditation, concentration and a healthy lifestyle do help with focus and mental performance, much of who we are and how are brain works is given to us at birth. Just as a sailboat is designed to use the wind to its’ advantage, regardless of the direction it’s blowing, we can adapt to our short attention span and in some cases, use our short attention spans to our advantage! This article is all about managing projects with a short attention span, and some techniques and habits we can use to overcome it.

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Pat Finnegan October 1, 2019
How Do You Run An Effective Status Meeting?
Project Management

How Do You Run An Effective Status Meeting? 10 Best Practices

In offices around the world, people yawn, gaze at the clock and day-dream during meetings. Meetings are seen as boring time-wasters that keep us from doing our actual jobs. Most people would jump for joy if meetings were wiped from the schedule altogether. There’s only one issue – meetings ARE important, at least when they’re run effectively. Meetings are the only time when the team gets together. When run efficiently, these meetings give everyone the opportunity to brainstorm, ask questions, address issues and improve the business. Rather than scrapping meetings altogether, the best option is to maximize the outcome. “How do you run an effective status meeting?”. In this article, we’ll discuss 10 practices to maximize your office meetings!

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Pat Finnegan September 30, 2019
Overwhelmed By Big Projects? Try These 6 Essential Techniques!
Project Management

Overwhelmed By Big Projects? 6 Approaches With Metaphors & Examples

When we first take on a project, it feels like we’re given a huge block of stone – from which, we’re expected to sculpt a finely-detailed statue. Even worse, we must sculpt it within a certain amount of time, with set resources. Where do we start? What do we do first? At the very beginning, a new project can feel quite overwhelmed. It’s even easier to feel overwhelmed by big projects. There are just so many steps, phases and tasks to get right. Just as a 1,000 mile journey begins with a single step, or how the pyramids are built with one block of stone at a time, projects can be broken down into easy, bite-sized steps – all it takes is a change in our approach and strategy! In this article, we’ll discuss six approaches to large projects, along with metaphors and examples.

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Pat Finnegan September 23, 2019

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Articles about straight-up getting things done at work.

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