Positive Project Management and Being Respectable

One of the keys to being respectable is to be positive. I have hardly seen anyone who is negative and respectable at the same time. Reason is simple. People relate better with positive statements and positive reasoning.

Sure, there are tonnes of problems in your project, people are not doing the job right and client is getting irresistible at times. But as a Project Leader/Manager, it is still very important to maintain a positive outlook while tackling these problems. A toxic Project Manager often leads a toxic team!

We know that managing projects is all about communication. The moment you add negative energy to any conversation, you tend to loose respect. This is as important for project management as it is for any other conversations.

I have seen number of Project Managers who loose respect of client because they are negative in their approach. Same goes for conversations in meetings and cross-departmental communications.

Simply put – it is about thinking “How can I make it work?” rather than just saying “This will not work”. Amazingly, there is always a better way of saying “This will not work” by giving appropriate reasoning (without sounding negative).

P.S. – Just read the post “Positive Leadership in Project Management”  by Frank P. Saladis, PMP. The crux of the post is:

Leadership can be challenging when an organization or a team faces difficult situations but it is during those times that the true leader emerges to inspire, provide hope, and create a positive attitude that will sustain the organization.

Very succintly put! Thanks to Raven Young for sharing this link in PM LinkFest.