The Mindset of the Best Project Managers

Adriana Girdler

Cultivating a Winning Mindset To Build Project Success Ever wonder what sets the best project managers apart from the rest? Is it their ability to …

Cultivating a Winning Mindset To Build Project Success

Ever wonder what sets the best project managers apart from the rest? Is it their ability to juggle a million tasks at once or their never-ending secret stash of coffee? Nope! It’s all about their mindset.

In all my years running projects and teaching scores of students how to successfully run projects I’ve seen firsthand that mindset is what truly makes the difference. The good news is, I have some actionable tips to share on what you can start doing today to cultivate a winning mindset as a project manager.

Tip #1 – Lead projects with confidence

The best PMs are extremely confident. But how do you project confidence when you’re new to an organization, or even new to project management in general?

  • Lean into your strengths and practice on any areas of weakness.
  • Put effort into being super organized before executing anything.
  • Gather data to help make decisions to avoid second guessing yourself.
  • When things go sideways, look for the silver lining.

Tip #2 – Stay curious

The best PMs approach their role with curiosity and a growth mindset. Here’s how you can too:

  • Seek feedback from trusted sources to help you learn and grow.
  • Don’t dwell on your mistakes – learn from them and move on.
  • Look at everything through a lens of continuous improvement.

More tips for cultivating a winning mindset as a project manager

There are a few more tips I want to share for how you can develop the kind of mindset that will help you succeed as a PM. Be sure to check out this video I made that does a deep dive on the topic.

Meanwhile, if you really are committed to mastering your next project, do consider taking my SLAY Project Management online course. I show you step-by-step how to successfully manage a project, plus you get access to every template you will need, along with detailed video instructions on how to fill them out.

Adriana Girdler, PMP | Creator of Slay Project Management

P.S. Check out what one of my students said recently about SLAY:

“Highly recommend this course no matter what position you hold. It gives you knowledge you can’t get anywhere else and it’s worth your time.!” MA

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Adriana Girdler is a project manager, productivity specialist, entrepreneur, professional speaker, facilitator, visioning wizard, and author. As President of CornerStone Dynamics, Adriana is one of Canada’s prominent business productivity and project management specialists—helping both individuals and businesses do what they do, only better. She is a certified master black belt lean six sigma with over 20 years’ experience improving how companies work.

She also holds both PMP (project management professional) and CET (certified engineering technologist) designations. She’s a Tedx speaker, as well as a HuffPost and Thrive Global contributor. She has been interviewed on Global, CBC, CTV, CHCH, 680News Radio, Newstalk 1010, Sirius XM and published in the Globe and Mail and numerous industry magazines. WANT ADRIANA'S FREE ONLINE TRAINING? In 45 min, learn Adriana's 5 project management secrets she use on EVERY project. Sign up for the Free Webinar here: THE FAB FIVE FUNDAMENTALS OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT

SLAY Project Management

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5 Sections and 24 step-by-step HOW TO Videos! The only 5-hour on-line course that teaches you the PRACTICAL side of project management. This course will guide you step-by-step on HOW to successfully run a project and provides you with all the templates and tips you need to be successful.

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Why Projects Fail?

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