No Whining. Ever
This is part 13 of a 14 part series describing my professional philosophy. Part 12 can be found here.
Think back to the last brainstorming session or planning meeting which you participated in and there was at least one person that shot down every idea or activity which was proposed. They may have simply said ‘no, we can’t do that’ to everything or they provided a big, long list of reasons why it couldn’t be done. Either way, the defeatist attitude was so profound that you could slice it and serve it on toast.
Or how about the time you worked with that one colleague that constantly complained about everything to anyone that would listen? They always had something new to gripe about every day and NEVER once talked about how to overcome whatever they were complaining about?
Yeah, I’ve been there too and it’s demoralizing.
This brings us to the FINAL item of my 12-point tenets for success:
There is no problem which cannot be overcome.
Or as our 26th US President so eloquently put it:
“Complaining about a problem without proposing a solution is called whining.” Teddy Roosevelt.
Whining is unacceptable in any place and at any time — unless you’re a toddler. If a toddler whines, then we accept it as a growing pain. But you should never find yourself whining in a professional environment. It gets really old, really quick and no one will put up with it — trust me, I used to whine A LOT.
A great phrase I learned during my time in the navy was “a bitching sailor is a happy sailor”. It’s a simple idea which means that a supervisor should be content when the subordinates are complaining about things — it’s a sign that they’re busy or gainfully employed.
THINK about that for a second. It’s effectively the same mentality that parents of young children will have — if you CAN HEAR the kids, they’re ok, worry about the kids when YOU CAN’T HEAR them!
Yeah, sailors and toddlers — I guess they used to dress the same for a reason!
Regardless of the noise coming from those nay-sayers, you may think: “Come on, there’s NO PROBLEM which cannot be overcome?” Sure, I get that skepticism and agree that there are lots of different problems in this world which are so daunting that they seem impossible.
But unless you work in the international political arena, you’re working on a cure to a disease like cancer or Alzheimer’s, or trying to figure out how to time travel — your problems CAN BE OVERCOME!
Your boss just assigned you to the biggest project that you’ve ever faced! Sure, that seems like an insurmountable challenge, but reread Point 11 and know that you are ready and capable to succeed. It’s NOT IMPOSSIBLE.
Critical thinking, problem solving, systems analysis, and work breakdown/task decomposition are a few of the key skills required for any role in this modern working era, not just project management roles.
When presented with a challenge that seems impossible — step back and see its entirety. Define the end state, look for the break points, and summarize the sections. Write out the high-level tasks or what needs to be accomplished while you think of dependencies, obstacles, and key milestones. Don’t rush it and before too long you will have a well-documented approach to a solution!
Not unlike modern Agile development for software, you can classify the Epics (major phases) for each new project, list the key features, define the User Stories under each feature, and then document the tasks required to complete each story. Sure, it’s easier said than done — but don’t let the immenseness of the whole project overwhelm you!
NOTE — This is my approach to Agile breakdown. There are many approaches which are almost personal, this breakdown has worked for me. Use the breakdown method which is best for you and your project.
Remember this riddle which all project managers enjoy asking at the start of a new project:
“How do you eat an elephant?”
[Dramatic pause.]
“One bite at a time!”
Maybe it’s just a bad dad joke?
Regardless, don’t complain about the big ugly monster of a project which you’re staring down and remember that it can be overcome. AND DON’T WHINE ABOUT IT — there’s no whining in project management!