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Do Construction Managers Have To Travel? Lets Break It Down
Career Planning

Do Construction Managers Have To Travel? Let’s Break It Down

Let’s kick this one off with a bit of history. It’s the year 1848. Location? North America. What were folks up to? The Revolutionary War was over, but the Civil War had not yet begun. While I can’t speak for everyone since I wasn’t there, about 300,000 people decided to pack up their belongs, leave the family homestead and head to California, often on perilous journeys. The reason? The Gold Rush. Although gold had been discovered in California by local residents earlier, 1848-1849 is when the rush truly began to occur. Often referred to as ’49ers, people from all over the world began arriving in California – not only from the eastern parts of America, but also from Mexico, Peru, China, Australia, New Zealand, Europe and more. The prospects of wealth and prosperity – even through word of mouth and letters – was sufficient reason to give up everything, leave home and spend time digging or ‘panning’ for gold in the desert. In short, people wanted money and California was the best place to find it. While things in America are a bit more stable now, the idea of traveling to find prosperity is far from over – actually, that goes for any country of origin. While working from home is pushing things in a new direction, the prospect of traveling to find better opportunities is still relatable for millions of people. This group certainly includes people working in the construction industry, but there are many nuances to consider. If you came here after wondering “do construction managers have to travel?”, fear not – I aim to answer this with as much detail as I can.

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Writing Skills For Project Managers - These 6 Are Essential For Success
Project Management

Writing Skills For Project Managers: These 6 Are Essential For Success

When one imagines a Project Manager, they may picture a person meeting with team mates, reviewing reports or giving presentations. While Project Managers do all of these things, there’s one task that nearly every P.M. spends quite a bit of time on, especially these days: writing. Whether it be writing letters or responding to endless emails, a significant portion of a Project Managers’ performance is underpinned by their ability to write. For many Project Managers (myself included), it takes years of time and experience to finely hone their writing skills. While the best way to get better at writing is to simply spend time doing it, there are many easy ways to improve writing abilities too; many of them are more about what not to do than anything else! Let’s talk about 6 essential writing skills for Project Managers that I’ve picked up over the years. Note that some of these tips aren’t necessarily about writing per se, but rather the intent and strategy behind why you should sometimes write a certain way. Let’s go!

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Is Project Management Competitive? The Answer Is Complicated
Project Management

Is Project Management Competitive? The Answer Is Complicated

Many students and young professionals aspire to become a Project Manager at some point in their careers. Some of us desire the title and decision-making authority that being a P.M. provides, while others long to overcome challenges and deliver projects successfully. Of course, many of us want the higher salary and other financial perks that Project Managers often enjoy. Whatever your reason for wanting to become a P.M., it’s likely that other people out there also want to become a Project Manager for similar reasons. How many others are looking to become P.M.s? Is project management competitive? If you’re thinking about becoming a Project Manager and are looking for some stats, then read on!

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5 Things I Wish I Knew As A Young Project Manager
Project Management

5 Things I Wish I Knew As A Young Project Manager

In the world of project management, some things can only be learned through experience. Despite my best efforts in my early years, I made plenty of mistakes managing projects. There’ve been times when I’ve felt confident in my strategy, only to walk right into an issue thereafter. “What was I thinking?”, I say to myself. “How did I not see that coming?”. I can also think back to times where I didn’t necessarily make a mistake, but would approach certain situations in a completely different way nowadays. It happens to all of us: every project manager makes mistakes, learns through experience and evolves over time. With that in mind, this article is meant to convey a few overarching lessons I’ve learned over time so young project managers out there can learn what I’ve learned the hard way. Here are five things I wish I knew as a young project manager.

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How Long Should I Stay At My Entry Level Job?
Career Planning

How Long Should I Stay At My Entry Level Job? A Few Things To Ponder

We all start somewhere. Our entry level jobs are often our gateway into our respective industries. They’re an experience that will forever mark your humble beginnings; memories that will last your whole career. That’s if we’re lucky. Entry level jobs can also be a crap experience! Whether it be the pay, potential or environment, we find ourselves questioning our career choices. Regardless of which situation resonates with you, it’s a question nearly all new employees ask themselves: “How long should I stay at my entry level job?”. In this article, we’re going to try and help you answer that question!

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Project Management Examples For Kids - 8 Lessons We Learn In School
Project Management

Project Management Examples For Kids: 8 Lessons We Learn In School

Project management is a complex task. Managing projects effectively requires education and training, but it also requires experience and a proper mindset. While some of this information can only be learned while working in the industry, many project management principles are based in lessons we learn as kids. In this article, we’re exploring some project management examples for kids via the lessons we learn in school. Let’s get started!

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Project Management Metaphors For A Quick & Easy Visualization
Project Management

Project Management Metaphors: 6 Quick & Easy Visualizations

As you may or may not know, there are three established types of learning styles out there – auditory, kinesthetic and visual. Visual learners comprehend the most amount of information when they’re shown something to look at. Explain how an engine works verbally and a visual learner will comprehend very little. Show that same person a video of an engine working, though, and they’re likely to understand a lot more about it. While metaphors are often visual in nature, learners of all types see metaphors as easy, simple ways to understand a topic. In this article, we’re talking about 10 project management metaphors for quick and easy visualizations!

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Working At A Large Company Vs. Small Company - The Pros & Cons
Career Planning

Working At A Large Company Vs. Small Company: The Pros & Cons

Companies come in all shapes and sizes. Plenty of businesses click on year after year with just a couple of employees, maybe only one! Meanwhile, giant corporations can employ hundreds of thousands of people – that’s like employing a couple hundred small towns. As you can imagine, the employees working at small businesses have a vastly different experience than ones working at a huge corporation. In this article, we’ll be discussing the pros & cons of working at a large company vs. a small company. Let’s get into it!

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The Importance Of Office Administration: 4 Key Aspects & Responsibilities
Project Management

The Importance Of Office Administration: 4 Key Aspects & Responsibilities

We talk about Project Management a lot on this website. While that is our core focus, I’ve realized that we don’t discuss an extremely important aspect of running any business or organization – the administrators. This holds true across every field, including and especially the construction industry where I hail from. While we can all agree that administrators play a vital role in the larger picture, there are several different areas in which they’re particularly helpful. In this article, we’re talking about the importance of office administration and the 4 key aspects and responsibilities behind their role.

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What Is An Assistant Project Manager? A Brief Overview Of The Position
Construction Management

What Is An Assistant Project Manager? A Brief Overview Of The Position

Project Managers are in charge of the whole show – as far as the specific project is concerned, the buck stops with them (or their boss). Regardless, Project Managers are expected to make the big decisions on the job. By the time they’re even promoted to P.M., they already have several years of experience in the field. So what exactly are P.M.s doing before they become Project Managers. In this article, we’re discussing the question of “what is an Assistant Project Manager?”, including what A.P.M.s do and the type of experience they have.

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