Recently i’ve been trying to smooth the rough edges around kicking off new projects. Mostly using the GDS service manual as my north star. Yet I keep having a nagging feeling that not all the pieces of the puzzle are sitting in front of me. It dawned on me that although there is tons of great advice on running a project, there is a lot less on the proposal and justification for non-profit projects. I’m often missing the point of WHY the project or proposed method is even being starting. To this end I’ve probably been frustrating people recently by constantly asking “WHY?”. You want to use the exact same approach as last time WHY? Were there complaints and if so WHY? WHY can’t we do this differently? WHY are we committing? WHY if we’re so busy would you want us to do this? WHY can’t I say no?
I want us to be as clear as possible that we’re focused on the core reason for us to start a new project. Asking WHY really helps all of us refine our proposals. Once we know WHY we’re doing something it’s a lot easier to enjoy the ride!