Project Management

Personal Project Management

Projects vs Areas

Key rule: Every project must have a clear outcome (what "done" looks like) and at least one next action. If it doesn't, it's not a project — it's a vague wish.

Personal PM System

Capture → Clarify → Plan → Execute → Review → Close

Capture

• Everything that might be a project goes into an inbox
• "Project" = anything with 2+ steps and a desired outcome
• Weekly review processes the inbox

Clarify

• What is the successful outcome?
• What is the deadline (real or self-imposed)?
• What is the very next physical action?

Plan

• Write a one-page project brief (see template below)
• Break into milestones (3-7 per project)
• Identify dependencies and risks
• Schedule milestones in calendar

Execute

• Work from next actions, not the project list
• Capture blockers and open questions immediately
• Don't plan during execution — capture, continue, review later

Review

• Weekly: confirm each project has a next action; check milestone progress
• At each milestone: brief retrospective before continuing

Close

• Mark complete in project list
• Archive all project materials
• Brief retrospective: what worked, what didn't, what to carry forward

Project Kickoff Checklist

Before starting any project:

• Clear outcome written in one sentence (not "work on X" but "X is done and means Y")
• Deadline set (real or provisional)
• Stakeholders identified and informed
• Dependencies mapped (what must be true before I can proceed?)
• Risks identified (what's most likely to go wrong?)
• Resources confirmed (time, money, access, tools)
• First milestone defined
• Next action written as a physical, specific step

One-Page Project Brief Template

## Project: [Name]

**Outcome:** [One sentence — what does "done" look like?]
**Deadline:** [Date]
**Owner:** [Name]

**Why this matters:**
[1-2 sentences on why this is worth doing]

**Milestones:**
| # | Milestone | Due | Status |
|---|-----------|-----|--------|
| 1 | | | |
| 2 | | | |
| 3 | | | |

**Key risks:**
- [Risk 1] → mitigation: [...]
- [Risk 2] → mitigation: [...]

**Dependencies:**
- [What / who must come first]

**Resources needed:**
- [Time estimate: X hrs/week]
- [Budget: $X]
- [Access to: ...]

**Current next action:**
[Specific, physical, actionable step — not "think about X"]

**Notes / decisions log:**
[Running log of key decisions and reasoning]

Milestone Design

Good milestones are outcome-based, not activity-based:

Milestone rules:

• 3-7 milestones per project (fewer = no checkpoints; more = overhead)
• Each milestone is independently verifiable — yes/no, not "mostly"
• Last milestone = project complete (not "almost done")

Weekly Project Review

For each active project, answer:

1. What's the status? (On track / At risk / Blocked)
2. What's the next action? (Still valid or needs update?)
3. Is there anything blocking me that I haven't addressed?
4. Does the deadline still make sense?

Takes < 2 min per project in a weekly review.

Scope Creep Recognition and Response

Signs of scope creep

• "While we're at it, we should also..."
• New stakeholders appearing after kickoff
• Original deadline slipping "just a little"
• Next actions keep spawning sub-projects

Response

1. Name it explicitly: "This is a scope change — let's evaluate it deliberately"
2. Assess: Is the addition worth the timeline/resource impact?
3. Decide: Add to current project with revised timeline, OR create a new project, OR decline
4. Communicate: Update stakeholders on any scope or timeline changes

Project Health Indicators

Project Retrospective

Run after every completed project (15-30 min):

## Project Retrospective: [Name]
Date completed: [Date]

**What went well?**
- 
- 

**What didn't go as planned?**
- 
- 

**What would I do differently?**
- 
- 

**Key decision that paid off:**

**Key mistake to avoid next time:**

**Tools / processes to carry forward:**

**Estimate vs actual:**
- Estimated time: ___  Actual: ___
- Estimated cost: ___  Actual: ___
- Deadline: ___  Delivered: ___