We all fondly remember when, at some point in our careers, we were at a crossroads or needed to overcome an obstacle, and someone in our circle appeared to give us some useful advice that served us well. ¿What advice was given to you, and who gave it? Saving Changes...
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Reaching the top is not the most important and difficult thing, stay there is. I will never forget this advise because at some point when I was younger, I believed that reaching the top should be the goal, but in fact, staying there should be the goal. This is one reason I am a life long learner!
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1 reply by Verónica Elizabeth Pozo Ruiz
Jun 05, 2025 11:03 AM
Verónica Elizabeth Pozo Ruiz
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It's true, Rami, we must strive every day to preserve our skills and apply them for the benefit of society.
I could list several that I would consider having been equally useful. I think the top two interpretations of advice (not direct quotes) that would be the most useful for new or prospective PMs would be 1) to figure out who to talk to, to get things done, and 2) process is important, but adding value and getting things done is more important. Don't get so caught up in "how project management is supposed to be done" that you get in the way of delivering results. This can take time and practice to get right. Saving Changes...
Great question Verónica Elizabeth Pozo Ruiz One advice that stuck with me was from my first manager he said, “Listen more than you speak. People will show you the real problem if you let them talk.” It’s helped me build trust and solve issues better in every project since.
In my first job where I was a real PM, despite not yet knowing that was my de facto job, a senior VP (Jim) came into our status meeting, smug and angry, and shut my first big project down, there on the spot.
I went back to my desk disappointed and started packing, but my wiser lead told me not to change anything I was doing until I saw it in writing.
Sure enough, the sponsor or my project (angry Jim's boss) had different ideas about the cancellation and told Jim to consider a different decision.
It was a temporary and nearly show-stopping interruption, but sometimes you need to stay on plan until cooler heads prevail.
Reaching the top is not the most important and difficult thing, stay there is. I will never forget this advise because at some point when I was younger, I believed that reaching the top should be the goal, but in fact, staying there should be the goal. This is one reason I am a life long learner!
It's true, Rami, we must strive every day to preserve our skills and apply them for the benefit of society. Saving Changes...
'Have a book in which you write what you learn'. I use my phone these days instead of a book but the practise of reproducing what I've learnt through typing or writing helps me remember the lesson better and also ensures that I can always refer to the book. Saving Changes...
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