Creating a Successful Project

There are a wonderful number of analogies available to provide perspectives on what creates a successful project. There are the sports analogies and the successful teams that have won championships. There are the cooking analogies and the ability to pull the ingredients together that create a culinary delight. There are the building analogies on how to gather the requirements to create the ideal house. Other analogies such as putting a man on the moon, taking the first flight, and other glorious pursuits have been used to demonstrate how success is achieved. Books have been written diving into the reasons for the successful outcomes analyzing the key attributes, principles, and distinctions that have attributed to success. As a result, we (I use this loosely) have chased these attributes, principles, and distinctions so we could mimic the success of others, failing to recognize that duplication rarely occurs nor is it ever truly desired. Replications are rarely as valuable as the original.

Stories are told of building teams of the best and brightest and success eludes them or buying the best equipment possible only to have it make little to no difference. If it isn’t the best people or the best equipment, what is it that creates success? We’ve even heard stories of getting the best people and the best equipment and still falling short of the goal. Last, we’ve heard the stories of the little engine that could, those “how did they do that” stories causing us to pause and wonder, what does create success in teams, in recipes, and in life? Is there one thing that causes success, or does it require the magic of things working in your favor, circumstances aligning to the desired outcome, luck, or some other ingredient?

I would like to suggest that there is one thing that creates the greatest likelihood of success for an individual or a team, for almost any endeavor. It isn’t talent, although that increases the possibility, nor is it the equipment used, although that can enhance the outcome. It isn’t that circumstances are stacked in favor of the outcome. I would suggest that the one thing that makes a difference is about ways of being.

What do I mean by ways of being? Seems quite vague, I know. It is tangibly intangible. It is about being successful before the results show success. It is about being flexible, before flexibility is required. It is about being aware of what is working and what is not working and then doing something about what is working and what is not working. It is about creating the experience of success and acknowledging successful moments along the journey. It isn’t about the end game being successful, it is about each moment along the way that makes the difference. It is paying attention to the feedback that is being provided every moment of every day, acknowledging that feedback, and then putting that feedback to use in the very next moment. It isn’t about paying attention to the feedback you receive, although that is something that you will do, it is also paying attention to the feedback others receive. It is about viewing every experience as something to learn from, not something to avoid.

Success causes success much like an object in motion stays in motion. When we celebrate the successes along the way an energy is produced. That energy is what can sustain a team when things aren’t working, when we also view those times, the “things aren’t working” times, as opportunities to find what does work, the energy continues to build. When we are focused on what is working, success, and opportunities, there is a winning attitude that is created. A project, driven by the attitude of success, will likely succeed.

Does that mean every project will be seen by others as successful? Short answer is of course not. There will always be those who find fault with the work of others, that is the purpose of critics, auditors, and those who have the job of providing feedback. There is always room for growth and there will always be things that work and things that don’t work. It is the lens we use to interpret that information that makes the difference. When a project doesn’t deliver for a client, a project has delivered something. Bringing light to what worked and what didn’t throughout the project creates the opportunity to shift the project to deliver what the client requested.

Because projects are created by, run by, and completed by people they are inherently unpredictable. The project management world has been working to solve the problem of project success for a long time and I would say it has and has not been successfully solved. Gaining alignment day by day, week by week, month by month, year by year as to what success is for any individual project is what we are really talking about. Seeing a project as successful, painting the picture of success, telling the story of success, and gaining alignment along the way to that success story is the most important job a project manager has. Enrolling the team, the stakeholders, and project leadership in that success is about seeing the success in every moment of the project and celebrating it fully.

I know, so simple it is profound as a friend once said. Telling the story of success and gaining alignment to that story so that all are saying what the success looks like is what creates the likelihood of success. Being the success of the project is what creates the environment for success. What are you practicing today?