The Quest for Confidence

Two years ago, I met with an old friend, Dave, to catch up over coffee.

As we finished our 2-hour chat, we started speaking about project management. And he asked one question that changed my career trajectory for life.

Let me explain.

We were speaking about what lights a fire inside of us.

For me, that’s leading projects with confidence.

I’ve worked on projects in all shapes and sizes. Simple, complex. Agile, waterfall. Physical, digital. From startups to a global transformation program with McKinsey, and everything in between.

Some have been tough, and not all have gone well.

But the more projects I completed, the more I realized that successful project management is much simpler than people make out to believe. And I find it incredibly energizing when I’m called to help on a project so people can complete it with confidence.

So, my friend goes “Why don’t you do something with that?”.

Fast forward two years, 29,109 Tweets and 55 newsletters, and here we are. Over 49 million impressions writing about how you can excel as a project manager.

Crazy.

And you know what the best part is? Those Tweets and emails have sparked hundreds of conversations with people like yourself.

And when we discuss projects, the same issue comes up over and over:

Most people are stuck.

Stuck in a project or stuck in their career (often the first causes the second!).

They studied for years to master their field, from engineering to medicine, or from economics to beekeeping (true story!). But none of them ever studied for project management - despite their job relying entirely on their ability to do that with confidence.

And by confidence, here’s what I mean:

Confidence in their plans. Confidence in their process. Confidence that they didn’t forget that crucial step. Confidence in their team, and confidence in their ability to deal with the next issue smouldering in their inbox.

So they go on a quest. A quest to find the thing that solves all their problems and gives them that confidence. A quest for a silver bullet.

But here’s the thing:

After working with dozens of clients, I can safely say that you will NOT get this level of confidence from the next shiny project management tool or magic system - despite what marketers want you to believe.

Tomorrow, we’ll talk about the biggest mistake as a result of chasing this ‘silver bullet’ - and how you can make sure it doesn’t hold you back.

Talk soon,
Jasper