Discipline in Project Management

Several weeks ago I attended the annual Project Management Symposium in Denver, sponsored by the local PMI chapter. It was a great symposium as usual.  It’s always energizing to attend a number of excellent programs on project management and leadership.

One of the featured workshops was by Rory Vaden on “Raising Your Performance to the Next Level”.  In this post, I would like to pass on some of presenter’s insights to you.

Rory emphasized that a common denominator of success is being disciplined, and he defined that as “forming the habit of doing things that we know we should do but don’t want to do”. I believe that this really is a common denominator of success, and I believe it is as important in project management as in any other area of business.

We sometimes speak of the “discipline” of project management, and it really does mean having the discipline to apply proven principles and best practices to the project. Many of the good PM practices take energy, focus, and discipline to apply. They’re often not easy to do, but if done well, they pay off in better project performance and higher likelihood of success.

Discipline makes a difference. And it applies to the organization and the teams, not just to project managers.

In the workshop, the presenter discussed discipline in terms of three major factors: focus, sacrifice, and action. He argued that all three are needed to apply discipline.

Focus is about focusing attention and our thoughts, words, and behaviors on something specific, such as a project management process (like project planning), project tasks at hand, or a PM best practice (like team building or developing a project charter). Focus is important because it concentrates energy and effect. Project leaders can help achieve focus by removing barriers in the team’s way or by motivating them by creating greater clarity about project goals or giving them a compelling vision about what it will mean to the business to achieve those goals.

Sacrifice is about the discipline to do what it takes, to do what is right for the long term of the project (or the organization) rather than what is easy in the short term. It is the “doing what we should do” that will make a difference even though it might be something we “don’t really want to do” because it challenges us in some way.

Action is about making things happen and demonstrating that you have the discipline to do what is needed. It means leading by example. It means thanking others on the team when they step up to difficult tasks. And it means activating both yourself and others to do the tough stuff that will make the project successful. It means being persistent by continuing to do what needs to be done even when you run into one road block after another.

I thought this was interesting because, even though I believe in the need for discipline, you don’t often hear people speaking about it. More often you hear about this “silver bullet” or that simple solution.

One thing that the speaker did not mention which I think goes hand-in-hand with discipline is the need for continuous learning and the effort it takes. Yes, it takes focus and sacrifice and action – but applying a best practice or principle for project success is never as simple as doing one little thing. It takes attention and effort to learn the whats and whys that will really make the important difference.

Project Success Tip:  Take some time to think about project management as a discipline and about having the discipline to apply principles and practices that may not be easy but will make a difference. Be a bit tough on yourself in this self assessment and examine whether you really do have the needed discipline or whether you take the easy out. The result is that you will likely become more successful as a project manager if you are willing to take that next step of being more disciplined.