There will likely come a time in your professional career path when you may receive an opportunity to lead an extremely important project. While this may be an exciting opportunity for you, the fact remains that it can make or break your advancement opportunities. And after striving for such a chance for so long, the prospect of managing a large project can feel extremely daunting and, as a result, fear can set in.
To help you combat and overcome any fears, we recommend the first step being this: You need to tell yourself that you can not only do it, but do it better than anyone else. To help you gain the confidence needed for getting a project completed, your friends at Dale Carnegie Training of Edmonton have listed a number of other tips to help you:
1. Get Organized — Before you begin your task get everything organized. Make sure your supervisor has identified the objectives and parameters of the project. Organizing a big project will help make it feel achievable. Create a timeline and rate each task according to difficulty.
2. Break It Up — A big project can seem intensely intimidating. If you break it up into segments, you can tackle each piece at a time. This provides a sense of progress and accomplishment.
3. Don’t Delay — Being awarded a big project brings with it feelings of energy and excitement. Don’t waste that energy. Consider tackling the most intense chunk of your project immediately.
4. Set And Meet Deadlines — Make deadlines for each phase of your project. Outline who is responsible for tackling each task and when it is due. Be firm with yourself and your team about all deadlines. If problems crop up, make sure there is room in your schedule to adjust if necessary.
5. Schedule Regular Breaks — Don’t forget to schedule breaks for yourself and your team, especially if you plan to tackle your project aggressively. Working through lunches and ignoring basic needs like food is going to result in an immediate decrease in accuracy and performance, and can even negatively affect your health. If you feel guilty about downtime, use it to brainstorm about your project and its progress.
6. Ask For Help — If you need help or direction, ask your supervisor, coworkers or team for feedback or suggestions. Not only can they offer a fresh perspective, they can also help contribute to the project’s success. If you are truly overloaded with the amount of work the project requires, approach your supervisor immediately.
7. Review and Evaluate Everything — When your project is complete, take a look at what you’ve done. How could you have made the project easier? Take notes and use this as a learning experience for next time. If you have any last-minute changes, make them as reviewing your project also affords you the opportunity to correct them before the final results/reports are given to your supervisor.
Remember, large projects can seem intimidating, but if you incorporate the tips outlined above, you will give yourself and your team the greatest chance of success.
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