The first implementation is the ground-zero that you’ll compare all others to. It will give you a first-hand look at how you’ve improved, either by time, budget, the results you have, your feelings – or however you measure success of a project.
Repetitiveness can teach you a lot about how to do things and in which order to do them. As you repeat a process, you learn more about what works and what definitely doesn’t work.
It may seem like the same repetitive project, but if you think about it as you repeat the actions, you may get an entirely different perspective of how to do things in the future. That’s what keeps it from becoming boring and that’s what keeps your project moving forward as it should.
Be sure to keep records of a repetitive project from the very beginning – how long it took you to get started, how many obstacles encountered when you began and how long it took you to get to the finished product or goal.
That first implementation is a good starting point and can teach you a lot about how any project might be better if you took other actions. If you have a team of people working on the same project, it’s a good idea to get together periodically and find out what others are discovering.
The budget you formulated for the first implementation of the project should also be a consideration when keeping accurate records. By knowing what you spent in the beginning, you’ll know if you have to increase the budget to get better results or decrease the budget because it didn’t warrant the cost you planned for.
You may have ideas or plans about how to move forward with the project – add new enhancements or other improvements that will cause you to increase the budget. You can also compare what you’ve done to others who have created similar products or worked on similar projects.
If you’re just not satisfied with how the project turned out, a comparison base is necessary to make changes such as budget, workers who may not have lived up to your expectations or time that needs to be spent on the project to make it live up to your standards.
Repetitive projects don’t have to be entirely repetitive and boring. Always keep an eye out for how you can change things for the better. You may be tempted to ditch a project and go back to the drawing board if you don’t like how it turned out the first time.
But, with a comparison base, you may be able to salvage the project with a bit of tweaking. The first implementation of your base project should provide a great deal of knowledge that can lead you in the right direction.
Are you looking for more strategies to lay the groundwork for success in work and life? If so check out this course: Laying the Groundwork for Success in Work and Life!
