Are you lost in the belly of a big assignment? It happens. Beginning and managing big projects is definitely a challenge but stop panicking and stop trying to find a game plan in a hundred Tolkien-y “every journey begins with a single step” inspirational quotes and let’s get down to business. No matter how unweildy your assignment is–whether in its scope, complexity, or simply sheer volume of–even the most intimidating assignment can be wrangled with a little bit of planning. Or (more accurately) with a whole lot.
But how? Glad you asked!
Find the scope
The most essential part of successfully accomplishing a huge project is laying a solid foundation to build upon right at the outset. It’s pretty similar to how you wouldn’t build a house without a foundation. Or I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t. I have never built a house but I did accidentally sit through an architecture class my first semester of college because by the time I realized it I was just in too deep to leave. Anyway, yes, make your project foundation. Read your class schedule more closely. Lots of lessons here.
Determine the project goals
The goals of your project will inform your game plan. It is your compass. Without well defined goals you are just floating at the whims of the wind hoping that something works out by pure chance. It most likely won’t. Think long and hard about what you are trying to accomplish.
- Trying to drum up social engagement?
- Create searchable content?
- Make your mother proud?
- All of those things?
Find the immovable objects, the things this project simply cannot do without. Maybe your client has a specific voice you have to match, or maybe it has to include a specific theme. When you know your goals you make them your true north so that you can always head towards them. This is also when you should determine how the project should be closed or handed off to the client or team working on the next phase.
Stick with the priorities, leave the rest
It’s easy to get lost in the sea of a giant project unsure of where to even begin, but it’s just as easy to tell yourself you can include everything on your Beautiful Mind-esque brainstorm mind map because you have the freedom of an empty, seemingly empty canvas. Unfortunately, including every half-fleshed-out tangential idea you have only serves to dilute your main priorities. Eliminate anything nonessential; if its absence won’t compromise the quality of the finished product then you probably don’t need it.
Break it down
Simply writing “Build Rome” on your to-do list probably isn’t going to cut it. Breaking down your project into actionable elements is a totally essential part of the planning process. It’s not enough to know where you need to go, you have to plan how you’re going to get there.
Make an outline
I was going to make the above header say “Fun Size-ify Your King Size Project!” Wouldn’t that just have been so darling? It is true though, building an outline not only lets you form a clear skeleton to build everything on, it also helps you break everything down into bite size pieces. You’re just not going to feel as bad about 100 fun size Snickers bars as you are about one king size one even though they are functionally the same thing (math checks out).
Create a realistic timeline
The first thing you should consider is whether or not your project should be broken out into larger tasks less frequently or smaller tasks more frequently. Both have their merits and it all depends on your preferences, the parameters of the project, and how you work best. If it’s a lot of little nagging tasks that you would get burned out on focusing on for a bunch of hours at a time, it’s better to schedule quick, frequent tasks to get in, get out, and get gone. With tasks that necessitate more concentration (like big writing projects) then it’s usually better to block out large swaths of time that really let you get in the zone.
Another two really important things to consider when constructing your timeline:
- Are you being realistic?
- Are you building in time for something to inevitably go wrong?
Despite your best intentions, something is probably going to go wrong. Build in buffer time. Always build in buffer time.
Get it done
Stay on track
It’s easy to get all turned around when you’re working in the thick of a big, thorny project and finding your way back to the trail you so carefully plotted out can be hard once you’ve left it. Just don’t leave it! Make sure to stay on course by:
1. Using the outline
You made it for a reason!
2. Keeping deadlines
Trust me, if anyone knows the allure of a flexible deadline it’s me. When you make your own deadlines they can seem imaginary and easily dismissed. It can be easy to tell yourself you will get to it later because it’s not a real deadline anyway. Bad idea, my friend.
3. Looking for warning signs
To-dos too close together? Tasks too big and unwieldy? Feeling burnt out? Is the quality of your work deteriorating? Constantly evaluate how the project is going and if you encounter problems don’t let them linger. It is especially important in large projects to remedy problems as they arise because it’s easy to circle back to all the little problems you meant to get back to and find that they are grown and multiplying.
Image: Wizard World Digital
Get feedback
Throughout the project it’s important to get feedback from other people; it can be really difficult to catch everything when you’re totally absorbed. I hope you are imagining being trapped inside a big, gelatinous monster, because I mean that kind of absorbed. There just isn’t a lot of visibility from in the belly of the beast. Occassionally, you should find a fresh set of eyes to go over the project, really anyone will do, perhaps an enemy who would like to embarrass you by pointing out how you just spelled “occasionally” wrong.
It’s also critically important to have someone else give the completed project a once over but with big projects this can be somewhat challenging. It’s not always feasible (particularly in small offices) for someone to devote a bunch of time to go over every single detail with a fine toothed comb. The easiest way to successfully get feedback is to identify all the questionable areas or problem parts of the project yourself and ask for specific feedback on any elements you aren’t totally confident in.
What now?
You’ve planned and planned more and trudged through a trillion to-dos and dotted the last i and crossed the last t. Well, congrats, buddy. You did it.
The post Braving the Bounty: Managing & Mastering Big Projects appeared first on ThunderActive.
