TCFBO #045: Pivoting Project Roles - Part Two

Read Time: 4 minutes

In Pivoting Project Roles - Part One, we looked at the differences between three key project roles.

The Visionary.

The Project Manager.

And the Implementer.

Ideally, each of these roles would be fulfilled by different people.

However, in a small business where resources are limited, this isn’t always possible and more often than not we, as business owners, end up fulfilling each of the three roles to a greater or lesser extent.

As each of these roles requires a different set of skills, each role also requires a different mindset.

And if you’re not in the appropriate mindset for the role you’re carrying out at any given time, you can end up causing yourself a number of problems.

For example, if you’re attempting to fulfil the role of the…

…Visionary in the Mindset of an Implementer, you risk allowing practicality to stifle innovation.

…Project Manager in the Mindset of a Visionary, your big picture focus can lead you to overlook the details and set unrealistic timeframes.

…Implementer in the Mindset of a Visionary, you may disregard practical constraints such as time, budget and resources in order to achieve the ideal outcome, which can lead to delays and budget overruns.

…Visionary in the Mindset of a Project Manager, you’re likely to end up limiting your ability to dream big simply because the outcomes you’d love don’t seem feasible from your current reality.

If you’re not focused on the right thing at the right time, then the whole project (and, in the worst-case scenario, the entire business) can veer completely off track.

So to avoid this happening, we use a combination of time-based cues and physical cues to effortlessly pivot between project roles.

In essence we have created triggers that, over time, have trained our minds to recognise the mindset we should be operating in at any given time.

Let’s give you a personal example and assume that Paul is fulfilling all three roles on a business project.

When Paul starts work on the business, the first thing he does is open a piece of software that shows the current project plan and associated tasks.

It doesn’t matter if he starts at 9:00am, 11:00am or 3:00pm, the time-based cue is “the first thing he does when starting work on the business”.

The physical cue is “the piece of software” and “the project plan”.

Paul enjoys the Project Management and Visionary roles more than the Implementer role, so there’s almost no resistance for him to be the Project Manager as his first role of the day.

In fact, he looks forward to opening the software, ticking things off the list, adjusting the plan and thinking about what’s next.

Then, as the Project Manager, he allocates himself tasks to get done that day, which he lists in a MindMap.

This gives a physical cue that Project Management time is over because he is no longer in the Project Management software and the MindMap gives a physical cue that he’s in Implementer mode.

Paul’s also typically better at Implementer type tasks in the afternoons and evenings.

So he’ll use the fact that it’s the afternoon or evening to remind him that his focus is on getting individual tasks completed rather than dreaming about the big picture or planning how to achieve them, which are the role’s he prefers to play and will default to given half the chance.

That’s all well and good, but what if he’s buried deep in a task as an Implementer and suddenly an idea hits him?

Well, initially he’ll use the Parking Zone strategy to capture the idea and then get back to the original task.

Then, when the task in hand is completed, he can look at the idea and decide which role is best to tackle it.

Does it need immediate consideration or can it wait?

Is it something related to the current project?

If it needs dealing with immediately then he’ll open up the Project Management software.

He’s now back in Project Manager mode and can consider it in the context of all the other tasks associated with the project.

But what if this idea is outside the scope of the current project?

Well, then he needs to get into Visionary mode and decide whether this is something to add to this project or to the overall vision to work on at a later date, or simply disregarded altogether.

To get into Visionary mode, Paul will typically move to a room that isn’t our office and just look out of the window.

This change of environment and view removes all the business-related cues associated with our current reality and provides a physical cue that he is now in Visionary mode.

At that point, he’ll immerse himself back into the vision we have for the business and make the decision from there.

Sometimes it’s not possible to move rooms.

So he’ll lean right back in his chair and just stare into space.

In both scenarios these physical state changes (moving room, standing up, looking out of the window, leaning back in his chair) give his mind the cues it needs to recognise he’s currently meant to be fulfilling the Visionary role.

So what time-based and physical cues can you give yourself to ensure you’re fulfilling the appropriate role at the appropriate time?

And how will they help you improve the way you move between the various roles you have to fulfill?

Let us know how you get on and we’ll see you next week.

Paul & Philly

Whenever you’re ready, there are three ways we can help you:

1. Grab a copy of Paul’s book “Backwards Planning - A Simple Method to Move You and Your Business Forward” and discover how to reverse engineer a life and business you truly love.

2. Book a facilitated “Life Vision Session” today and start creating a life and business that are fully aligned with your heart’s desires. We’ll arrange a pre-session call with you to say “Hi”, explain how the Life Vision Session works and answer any questions you may have.

3. Apply to join “The Clear Focus Business Academy” and ensure your business is the most effective it can be at providing the money and lifestyle you desire. Simply drop us an email or contact us here to tell us you’re interested and we’ll send you more info.