Running your Life as a Project

I have two friends who are studying for the Project Management Professional (PMP) certification through the Project Management Institute (PMI) right now. One of them is struggling and nervous about all the nuances of waterfall verses agile. I have to admit as someone who took the exam back in 2007, there is a greater body of knowledge now and therefore way more to learn. My other friend is super excited and talking about how they can use their fledgling project management skills to projectize their PMP exam preparation. In this case I see someone who has been using project management skills throughout their lives but just didn’t know that terminology. I am a big advocate of using PM skills as life skills.

In 2019 Forbes ran an articles Project Management Isn’t Just For Project Managers: 4 Skills You Need To Know and in 2020 Inc published Run Your Personal Life Like a Project Manager. The Inc article explains that if you are struggling with productivity at home project management skills might be the solution. Neil Craig Robinson even wrote an academic article about how project management skills can be used for transitioning between cultures. As someone who moved from Stuttgart Germany to Washington, DC, I can relate to this article.

In addition, several bloggers have discovered the value of using project management skills in their daily lives. Bindu Swetha proclaims that project management skills can supercharge your life – who doesn’t want a supercharged life. The Indian Employer Forum explains the value of project management skills for setting and achieving life goals and demonstrates that this skills are valuable across cultures. Fergus wrote in January 2023 that project management skills include life skills that everyone should have. Sarah M. Hoban recently garnered wisdom from her Lyft driver who concurred that life is short and it is valuable to manage our lives as a project.

When I look back to my book launch in 2017 and TEDx video in 2016, I believe that they are even more relevant today. In a world where we are all trying to balance our own brands and businesses. The world is filled with unlimited opportunities and using simple project management techniques as one way to reach your goals.

There are also several ways that you can learn more about how to apply project management in your daily life. Srinivas Reddy Edulakanti publishes a monthly newsletter on LinkedIn on how to use different project management tools and techniques in your every day life. Leah Bott teaches a course on Project Management as a life skill on Udemy and has trained over 1500 students. Tiago Mateus has a blog with several free downloads and a book on how to apply project management skills. Recipe for Success did a YouTube Broadcast on project management skills that are used every day. There are also some fun templates and infographics on this site if you want to check them out.

It is exciting to see that so many people and organizations are embracing project management as a life skill.