Chapter 25. The Secret of Great Project Managers

eXtreme project management is about managing creative individuals and focusing their creativeness toward adding value for clients. It is about being passionate. It is about doing good work and having fun.

However, there is a fine line between working with creative people, having fun, and being passionate about your project management skills and becoming too passionate about the project: The secret of great project management is to never own the project.

Once you cross the line between being passionate about your role as a project manager and becoming passionate about your project, you start to lose your objectivity, your focus, and your career. You start getting protective and defensive. You look downward instead of outward. You work harder instead of communicating harder. Most important, you stop asking for help from your stakeholders, team, and sponsor.

We have seen many wonderful, energetic, and passionate people make this fundamental mistake.

Always remember that you don't own the project. It belongs to your organization, your sponsor, and your stakeholders. They will be the winners when your project delivers the benefits. What you own is the facilitation, integration, and communication that great project managers use to manage projects for their clients. You own the project management process, they own the project.

All the tools and techniques in this book have been developed to fully empower your stakeholders in realizing their dreams: You are the conduit through which the dreams of your sponsor and stakeholders flow.