Black Belts. Snoop Dogg. And Titles For Bootstrappers.

 

The first thing that I moved into this house eight years ago was the television and the internet connection. Priorities people.

The first thing on the agenda for The Project Management Makeover Project, my attempt to make Project Management sexy, are the titles. The words or acronyms you may put behind your name when you managed to pass the test criteria.

This is important. This is what The Others will see from our make over. If you need to become sexy, you can work on your inside and outside.  If you need to do it fast, go for the outside only. Call me shallow.

I always admired the people that have a title from Lean Six Sigma. The belts. A Black Belt. A Green Belt. You can hear Mr. Miyagi from the The Karate Kid in the background: "Paint the fence. Wax the floor." You will step aside when a Black Belt enters the office. There is a sense of admiration going through the room. With one well placed kick the Black Belt will kick the crap out of your waste.

We should go for something like this.

Acronyms don't have the same feel to it.  Although. My all-time favorite is still LIVR. I remember this one from reading The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy during study. When I studied software engineering during the first half of the nineties, reading this classic book series by Douglas Adams was socially required. If you were unable to quote The Guide, well, you were not a geek.

In this book a judge has the letters LIVR behind his name. Learned, Impartial, and Very Relaxed. This was just to reassure people that he was indeed learned, impartial and very relaxed. Same thing with a Black Belt. That's reassuring.

It should also flow natural in conversations.

"I am Learned, Impartial and Very Relaxed." "Of course you are."  Great flow.

From PMP to PiMP is a world of difference.

You can shizzle like Snoop Dogg.

"What can I do for you, PiMP?" Now that's flow.

From Prince 2 to Prince Of Darkness is a world of difference. That would be an awesome business card.

"John Doe, Prince Of Darkness". Working for Evil Empire Inc.  Different flow. Different feel.

So. Feel. Flow. Let's see what else is important?

Oh. Yes. Uniqueness. If everyone has the same title, it is not really a differentiator, is it?

So. I was thinking. Why not give everyone a different title?

Things like: He Who De-creeps The Scope. He Who Haz Ze Plan. Or She of course. This will only result in an administrative nightmare. But. We just have to find He Who Haz The Power To Create Large Databases.

So. Titles for Bootstrappers. That is the new word for PM in case you missed it.

The more I think about. Everyone should be able to create there own. Register it on a web site, so people can look up what the heck it means.

Wouldn't it be awesome if you can officially put Power Ninja behind your name? Or Risk Buster? Or even Certified Risk Buster to reassure everyone it's official, and not something you just made up.

How about Project Shrink? Or would that be too much?

Bas de Baar is a writer who draws about people in transition. He loves to make visual maps and travel guides for the collaborators of our brave new world.