Six Tips to Learn More About Project Management
Sunday, February 17, 2019, 6:00 AM | Leave Comment
The basic definition of Project management is that it is the discipline of initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and closing the work of a team to achieve specific goals and meet specific success criteria.
But project management doesn’t always mean working more, it means working smarter.
There are many great ways to learn more about project management.
Read about six suggestions below.
-
Get serious about leaning more
Whether you’re a beginner or novice, you need to invest more to boost your project management skills. Get serious and take the first step. For example, enroll in a formal training course, read a book or take an e-learning class. Then set aside at least two hours every week to sit down and read books, materials, articles and white papers about project management. By immersing yourself in the topic, you will spark ideas for your own projects that you can use to improve your success.
-
Widen your scope
Don’t just stick to the classical theory of project management. Instead, widen your scope by reading materials that also cover managing people, money and equipment as well as suppliers, procurement and communications. Read about Agile, Critical Chain and other interesting aspects of project management.
-
Write it down
Do you find that much of what you read will go in one ear and out the other. So every time you think “That’s a good point!” write it down. Writing it down helps you remember it. Create your own “Learning Guidebook” and record every tip that you’ve learned along the way. Then you can read your own guidebook as a refresher. Even better, you can use it to impart the knowledge you’ve gained to your team. Who knows, you could even publish it as a book!
-
Get specific
When you’ve spent a couple of months improving your knowledge of project management, you’re ready to get specific. Write down the areas that you’re weak in and get detailed materials on those topics. For example, get more in-depth knowledge of scheduling, estimating or risk management if those areas are weak for you. Remember that project managers are generalists. They need to know a lot about ALL of the topics in the management discipline. So if there are topics that you’re weak on, learn more about them now.
-
Vary your learning sessions
There are lots of ways to learn more about project management. You can take in-person class or e-classes, but there are many other options. Listen to paid or free webinars. Read magazines, books, blogs, articles and tweets. Look for mentoring. Start a discussion group. Join PMI or another project management society. You might be surprised how many sources contain project management information if you think about it.
-
Apply your new knowledge
The purpose of learning new things is to make you a better project manager. So, you need to apply the knowledge that you have gained so you can actually be a better project manager. Not everything of course. Some new theories and techniques may not be practical in your current position. But look for ways that you can implement as much of your new knowledge as possible.
Throw us a like at Facebook.com/doable.financeCourtesy of…
This column is © copyright to www.Method123.com and originally appeared in their weekly project management tip newsletter.
Use the best project management process in the world. Method123 Project Management Methodology (MPMM) is used by tens of thousands of customers around the world.
Take a test drive with the free trial download.
Buy MPMM today – NOW with extra program management and IT development modules.
Method123 Templates. There are no excuses for having crummy project management templates – not with Method123 templates a click away. Buy one or buy the complete set. Buy a multiple person license for everyone in your group.
Click here to see the full PM Kit. No excuses!
