We’ve all been there before: you look at your calendar and see that a big presentation is scheduled at the end of the week, and it’s already Wednesday. The problem is you haven’t even started your slide deck or done any research for it yet (queue the stress).
Whether it’s an important presentation or even just a task you’ve been putting off for weeks–having a plan in place for conquering any situation will help alleviate stress and improve the quality of your work. Here are a few tools that’ll help you avoid the “Sunday Scaries” or cramming the night before a project is due.
Reasonable Timelines & Communication are Key
The first step before agreeing to or assigning a project is setting up reasonable timelines and expectations. Make sure everyone who is involved in the project has a clear understanding of what they’re responsible for and when they need to accomplish it. When you have these conversations, you know from the start that you’re promising something that can actually be done.
HubSpot’s Meetings Tool
HubSpot has a fantastic meetings tool that allows people to schedule meetings with you and/or your team straight from a generated link.
Keeping clear communication and having check-in points on projects allows you to have visibility into the project’s progress. When you check-in with your team, you have a designated time to focus on the project and can more easily discuss obstacles you’re encountering and know if you’re on track with your timeline or not.
Using HubSpot’s meetings tool, set up a team meeting that includes everyone on the project. You can easily see where people have availability, and you can schedule multiple check-in meetings straight from the calendar. This is hugely instrumental when you establish those project check-points because you can designate which tasks need to be ready for these meetings. It also helps to ensure that you’re on track to the project deadline.
Have a Project Management System in Place
So, you’ve communicated with your team what everyone is responsible for, established timelines and have scheduled your check-in points. Now, it’s time to monitor tasks and activities related to the project.
If you have a project management software, make sure to create tasks for all activities that need to be done to complete the project. Depending on the tool you use, you can also create milestones, add in scheduled meetings or even set up notifications when tasks are completed. Designating a dedicated project manager is another great way to ensure you’re hitting deadlines. They can monitor tasks and communicate when they don’t think the project is progressing as it should be.
Avoid Over-promising and Under-delivering
Don’t think you can accomplish what you’re being asked to do? That’s okay; make sure to communicate why you don’t think you can complete a project. Setting realistic expectations and keeping an honest dialogue will establish trust. Additionally, you won’t be faced with the stress of under-delivering.
Create a wish list or future projects list to keep projects on your radar that you aren't currently working on. If you’re unable to work on a project because you currently have too much on your plate, that's okay. Keeping a running list of them ensures that a previous project isn't forgotten about and stays on your radar for future reference.
Let us be your Partner for your Next Project
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