Even a Hero Project Manager Needs a Few Tools...

I imagine that even the best of us sometimes lose focus on the task at hand. Even on our goals in general. I know I did. Not that I rate anywhere near the best, but, please give me a little slack.

The last few years of intermittent employment have really tested my focus. I've found myself feeling somewhat disillusioned with the job hunt. And that bodes bad for the future of our family savings.

I'll admit, part of it is that I've always felt that I would much rather face the uncertainties of being my own boss versus working for someone else. And, I may have a remedy for that.

But, that is not what this post is about. Here, I'm talking about how I've gone about gradually regaining my focus in life and as a project manager. In general, this is about Time Management.

My first criteria was to use low cost (read "free") but effective tools. I was reminded by a Toastmasters colleague, Sonia Farace,  about the value of journaling in gaining or re-gaining certain skills and habits. Another friend and colleague from PMI-SD, Jim Franklin, kept suggesting I learn to use mind mapping as a planning tool.

I did finally start experimenting with some mind mapping tools and gradually became comfortable with the process. In my search for a low cost app, I finally settled on Mindmeister as a good alternative. The demo version is free and offers all of the functions I need, and it syncs to my Android phone. The greatest limitation is that I only get three maps with the demo. I suppose I could design a way to include everything I do on one (or three) huge maps, but I'll probably upgrade. It will be a more comfortable path.


You can get an overview of how I set up my main focus map here.

First, I created a node for all of my New Ideas, anything that isn't on here otherwise but that I at least want to consider at some point.

Next, if the idea passes muster, I move it to Action Items where I try to set some date by which I plan to act on it. I review this node on a daily basis to see if any of the items are due for action. If one is ready, I move it to Action Points, Prioritized Items and put it on an appropriate priority node, 1 through 10.

Also on the Action Points node you'll see the Recurring Tasks node with sub-nodes for Daily, Weekly, Monthly and Yearly nodes. The use of these should be pretty self-evident.

Each morning, I start my day with a review of what is due for the day. Mindmeister even sends me notifications when a task is due to start. This helps me formulate my action plan for the day.

It works very well, too. As long as I don't let some other spur of the moment requirement jump the shark, so to speak. Now admittedly, there will always be legitimate reasons to deviate from the plan. But really, did I absolutely have to respond to that email about the next great idea in politics‽ (That's an interrobang, if you've seen one, look it up here.)

That's where the journaling comes into play. In a recent presentation, Sonia told us that the key to building a consistent routine and staying in focus is to remind ourselves what we did well and what we didn't do so well. Journaling is the process for that and the tool I settled upon is Google Calendar. A simple enough tool and it's free for all, and again, it syncs with my Android phone.

You can see my basic setup here.

I created a series of recurring one-hour "appointments" in which I record whatever activities I do during that hour. For the most part I don't get too detailed, but on some matters it helps to capture more detail. I have that flexibility. Recording what I did helps me stay on focus by being a reminder of whether I did stay on focus during this interval or whether I got distracted and sidetracked. It doesn't help recover a wasted hour, but knowing I have to "tell on myself" makes me think before letting it happen again.

You'll also notice a series of recurring two-hour appointments for Work Assignments. I use these at the start of the day to set out what my major task for each time period is to be. If a Journal period isn't within a Work Assignment period, I am free to tackle other little chores like email, planning for the next day, etc.

I'm not saying this is a perfect system, but I can say that I have seen a marked improvement in my focus over the two weeks that I have been using it. I wander off focus much less and find it easier to get back on focus when I need to. Also, I find it to be relatively easy to use.

If you are having trouble focusing on your goals or your task at hand, in other words, if you have lost the knack or desire for good Time Management, try something like this.

It's helping me, I think it can help you.