Definition: proj·ect noun––What is a Project Anyway?
Life’s a Project: Why You’re Already a Project Manager
proj·ect
noun | ˈpräˌjekt |
an individual or collaborative enterprise carefully planned to achieve a particular aim:
a research project | a nationwide project to encourage business development.
A school assignment undertaken by a student or group of students, typically as a long-term task that requires independent research: a history project.
A proposed or planned undertaking: the novel undermines its stated project of telling a story.
What Exactly is a Project?
You’ve likely heard the term project tossed around a lot. Road construction, a new building, adding a patio to your house—all are referred to as "projects." Some drag on for an eternity (who hasn’t been stuck in a never-ending construction zone?). Other projects, like organizing a local 10k race or the grand opening of a new grocery store, have hard deadlines.
But what defines a project?
The Standard Definitions
Everyday activities, big and small, fit neatly into the standard dictionary definitions of a project:
An individual or collaborative enterprise planned to achieve a particular aim.
A temporary, rather than permanent, social system comprises teams that perform tasks under time constraints.
A set of interrelated tasks to be executed over a fixed period and within specific cost and resource limitations.
At first glance, these definitions seem like they belong in the domain of corporate boardrooms, engineering blueprints, or construction sites. But the reality? Projects are everywhere. Nearly everything you do could be classified as a project.
Projects in Everyday Life
Let’s expand our view for a minute. Think beyond the cranes and Gantt charts. How about these examples?
Going on an overnight camping trip.
Organizing a school play.
Making a pizza at home.
Launching a digital marketing campaign. (Okay, maybe this one isn’t relatively mundane.)
Every single one of these activities fits the criteria. There’s planning, there are steps, and there’s a goal. For the camping trip, it’s about not forgetting the tent stakes. Every task you coordinate with others, or even alone, has the skeleton of a project.
Projects Aren’t Sacred Events
Projects are not some mystical rite reserved for engineers, general contractors, or corporate strategists. Whether managing a multinational infrastructure plan or coordinating your next vacation, you’re a project manager. The principles are the same: bringing together the right people with the right resources at the right time for the right reasons.
But here’s the thing: even though we handle multiple "projects" daily, they’re not always treated as such. And this is where many of us stumble. To succeed, even in the simplest of projects, we must be intentional about gathering the right team, clarifying the purpose, securing the necessary resources, and keeping time in mind.
Success: What Does It Look Like?
Notice how many pieces are required to complete a project—people, reasons, resources, location, and time. But there’s another crucial part: how do you measure success?
Success for personal projects might be as simple as:
Did you pack everything for your camping trip?
Did the actors remember their lines in the school play?
How crispy is the crust on your pizza?
These seem like small wins but mirror the same elements in large-scale projects. Whether you’re managing a multimillion-dollar project or making pizza for the family, the underlying questions are surprisingly similar.
Corporate Projects: Same Game, Bigger Stakes
When we shift our gaze to large corporate projects, the metrics of success scale up:
Did the project come in under budget?
Were all the features and benefits delivered as promised?
Was the product or event launched on time?
Take organizing a 10k race, for example. Success isn't just about getting people to the start line. It’s about securing permits, arranging sponsors, coordinating volunteers, setting up timing equipment, and ensuring safety protocols are met. And all of that must happen under tight constraints—much like that perfect pizza crust needs to come out of the oven at just the right moment.
The Universal Elements of Project Success
So, whether you’re making coffee or launching a product, the success of your project often hinges on these three elements:
Cost: How much did the project cost?
Delivery: Was everything completed as planned?
Time: Was the project completed on time?
These three pillars—cost, delivery, and time—form the foundation of most projects, big or small. If any one of these elements slips, the entire project can unravel. That’s why it’s crucial to recognize these metrics in everything you do.
What’s the Point? It’s All a Project
Take a look around today. If you’re mapping out your next work assignment, you’re knee-deep in a project. It might not feel like it, but trust me—you manage more than you think.
We may not all be certified project managers, but we all manage multiple projects in our lives. The key to success is to recognize the elements, pay attention to the details, and make every project—no matter how small—count.
Recognizing that life is filled with projects means you’ll start managing them more intentionally. You’ll find yourself asking the right questions, organizing tasks better, and maybe even measuring success in new ways. So, next time you brew that perfect cup of coffee, know you’ve just completed another successful project. Make it count!
Stay tuned! We’re just getting started with this exploration. Soon, we’ll dive into the tools and techniques that can make managing these projects—big and small—a whole lot easier.