59: Restraint

The Project
So at long last my final content for “Project Program and Portfolio Management in easy steps” has been uploaded to the publishers.  Now the waiting begins!  Will they like it?  Will they find any errors or typos?  There is always a strange sort of empty feeling when I finish a book or any other project, but in my case I have one or two more things in the pipeline, so watch this space.

As project managers, we need to be aware of what is happening and how things happen on our projects, so that we can act accordingly.  Poor project managers tend to bludgeon their way through a project, organizing everything and running everything.  They try and stamp their authority on the project and the project team.  But the project manager is no different from anything or anyone else, which means that he is ordinary.  Only by knowing and understanding this can he become a wise project manager.  

The Way  
The wise project manager uses restraint in his approach to everything.  He does not try and force his ideas onto the team.  He encourages the team to evolve their ideas and he nurtures these.  This way he can help to steer the project away from trouble and be effective.  

In governing men and serving heaven,  
Nothing equals restraint.  
Restraint begins with giving up one’s own ideas.  
Giving up one’s own ideas depends on preparedness.  
When you are prepared then nothing is impossible.  
If nothing is impossible, then there are no limits.