Many people get into project management not by choice, but by requirement. Maybe they are the person who has time available to “coordinate activities”. They may be “voluntold” that a project is theirs, or that it would be a positive step for their career to run a project or two. In any event, diving into project management head-first can seem daunting, especially as you are trying to learn as you successfully “manage” your project.

Project management can be distilled into basic activities and deliverables. It may not sink in at first; there is a lot to learn. However, by taking it piece-by-piece, you can get comfortable with the activities and the items you are expected to produce. The terminology may take hold after a while, too. But starting with dry, technical explanations might not be the best way to learn. Having something that keeps it simple, that you can reference while running your project might be better.

In the coming weeks, I will introduce my “Simple PM” series. It is for the person who conducts project management activities but is not looking to get certified or have a career in the field. I will explain things in common, everyday terms, instead of using PM lingo. Sometimes that is unavoidable; other times, common terms and language work better.

Each post will be based on information from the Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK^®) and may include other methodologies (capability maturity, systems development life cycles, etc.). The goal is to teach the core tenets in a way that is useful to anybody.

I hope this series will be beneficial to you.