5 Project Management Tips From Santa Infographic
It’s the holiday season and while offices around the world are wrapping up their work, there’s a workshop at North Pole which is just getting started. Santa Claus is a brilliant project manager, as good as anyone. He not only builds enough toys for all the children in the world, delivers them in one night, manages a huge and diverse staff and recruits new, talented reindeer, but year round he is on top of business. Here are 5 project management tips that we all can learn from Santa Claus.
What we can learn from the big boss at the North Pole
- Delegate, delegate, delegate: The big man at the North Pole knows he not only needs to have a team, but to trust them. Old Saint Nick is not a micromanager. He is a master of letting others master. A good manager knows it's about creating leaders, not followers.
- Welcome diversity and innovation: Santa Claus could have told Rudolph that he was crazy and his bright red nose would scare the children and crash his sleigh. Instead, he welcomed him in and had the faith to try something new. And it paid off. For Santa and for the Red Nosed Reindeer.
- Set clear deadlines and goals: Everybody working underneath Mr. Claus knows exactly what the plan is. There is no ambiguity about timelines or what the mission is. The workshop is a well-oiled machine. But Santa knows it's not just clockwork, he is always tinkering and seeing how the mission and the process can be improved.
- Think like an early adopter but do what works: Father Christmas knows tablets and drones are on children’s wishlists, but he also knows sometimes the biggest smiles come from a good old classic, like a toy train. As a project manager, it’s great to know the latest tools and technology but sometimes a face to face talk with a colleague or a handwritten letter can make all the difference.
- Be jolly: Who would you rather work for a moody boss or a guy w is walking down the hallways with a booming “Ho, ho, ho laugh? Yeah me too. Jolly Old Saint Nick is cool, calm, collected. Even when it's foggy and he’s wondering how the elf his sled will fly. When things get stressful, channel your inner Santa, smile and do a great big “Ho, ho, ho” belly laugh. No really. You should try it.
View also: 8 Merry Leadership Lessons Taught by Santa Infographic
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