Having introduced the concept of Enlightened Project Management the next logical step for me is to give you all some insight into the purpose of this philosophy or more specifically “why I do what I do”. The purpose that drives me can be easily adopted by all of you and applied to help you achieve a more rewarding and successful experience not only professionally but in your personal life as well.

Years ago when I was a student in the UCSD Extension Project Management Professional Certificate program I took a class titled “ Managing for Maximum Performance”. The instructor was an extremely talented teacher by the name of Greg Goates. One of the many creative things that Greg did in class was to expose us to a variety of books on various subjects (something I now do with my students). One of those books was “The Art of Possibility” by Ben and Rosamond Stone Zander.

Ben Zander is a gifted musician, teacher, and coach and his book had a profound influence on me. His influence was such that it is largely responsible for me being where I am in my life today, which is to say very happy and successful, and doing what I feel is useful and rewarding work. I will always be indebted to Greg for being a great, innovative teacher and exposing me to something that had such a profound effect on my life.

How does all this tie back to my purpose you might ask? When I speak to an audience, teach a class, or conduct a workshop most of the people will enjoy the experience because the material is useful and interesting and I present it well. But I know there will always be one or two people in the crowd who will take something that I presented and act on it leading to something that will significantly change their lives.

They may read a book I mentioned or be inspired by something I said and take action. That action may be to get a certification that gets them a promotion at work. It may inspire them to quit their crappy job and get a good job or to quit work altogether and start the business they always wanted to start. The point being that when I interact with people I know that I will cause one or two of them to take some action that makes their lives significantly better. Knowing that I am having that effect is extremely rewarding and satisfying.

What does this mean to you? We all have the opportunity to positively influence the people with whom we interact. If you take the approach that you are going to make a difference in the lives of the people with whom you interact you almost certainly will. You’ll find the knowledge that you are helping people to make their lives better to be extremely rewarding and satisfying. You’ll also discover that as a result, your own life is significantly better as well.

©2016 Joseph T Drammissi