Zen of PM - Going From Blank Page to Concept

Going From Blank Page toConcept

The key to gettingaway from the awful emptiness of the initial blank page (or blank whiteboard orempty slide deck) is to be willing to make a proposal, take a stand, or floatan idea. Designing a solution is not like solving an algebra problem: there isno provable right answer that you can find all by yourself. Start with an ideafor a solution – any idea – and see if you can explain it to your colleagues.Share your rough thoughts in e-mails, short documents, or whiteboard scribbles.Visit other team members in their offices to brainstorm.

You’ll probablydiscover right away that even you don’t understand your ideas well enough toexplain them. Once you get over that first embarrassing hurdle, you’ll quicklyfind the good and bad stuff in your proposed solution, and the very smartpeople you work with every day will inundate you with ideas for getting to abetter solution. (Remember, your job is to lead the effort to get to a greatsolution … not to be the one with all the great ideas.)