Manage This - The Project Management Podcast

The podcast by project managers for project managers.  Ren Love is the newest member of our Velociteach team and the Manager of Curriculum Development. Hear about her unique management experiences as she talks about leadership, interviewing, the PMP exam, and coping with testing anxiety. Table of Contents  02:19 … Meet Ren02:53 … Ren’s Project Management Journey06:20 … Memorable Success at Projects10:16 … Mammals and COVID11:34 … Preparing for Leadership14:08 … Routes to Project Management16:31 … Leadership Styles for PMs18:16 … Interviewing Tips19:58 … Be Confident in what You Know22:41 … Encouragement to New PMs24:37 … Ren’s Advice Wish List26:03 … Kevin and Kyle27:11 … When the Job is Different to the PMP Training30:35 … Common Questions about the PMP Exam31:54 … Overcoming Exam Anxiety34:47 … Contact Ren35:56 … Closing REN LOVE: ...be confident in what you know, and confident in how you’ll grow.  You don’t have to know everything about everything.  A well-rounded project manager is a lifelong learner.  ...Be confident that your past life experiences have made you who you are and will make you good at project management in the situation you’re in. And then also be prepared to say, there are things that I’m going to grow, and in this company.  What kind of opportunities can your company offer me to help me grow?  WENDY GROUNDS:  You’re listening to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  I’m Wendy Grounds, and with me in the studio is Bill Yates and Danny Brewer.  We’re so excited that you’re joining us, and we want to say thank you to our listeners who reach out to us and leave comments on our website or on social media.  We love hearing from you, and we always appreciate your positive ratings.  You will also earn PDUs for listening to this podcast.  Just listen up at the end, and we’ll give you instructions on how to claim your PDUs from PMI. Today we’re talking to one of our co-workers.  Her name is Ren Love, and Ren has a very interesting educational background which is almost as diverse as her professional one.  She has done many, many things in her exciting career before joining us at Velociteach.  She has a B.S. in Environmental Science, she has an M.S. in Biology and an M.S. in Instructional Design and Learning Technologies.  And she has worked in zoos, science centers, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, as well as one of the Big Four accounting firms.  So she’s really had fingers in the pie all over the place, and she has also earned her PMP.  She’s a Certified SAFe Agilist as well, as a Certified Scrum Master.  So she’s got some well-rounded advice. BILL YATES:  Yes, she does.  I can’t wait to have this conversation with Ren.  She joined us full-time in fall of 2022 as the Manager of Curriculum Development, and it’s just been a delight working with her, both as an instructor and now full-time on the team.  And we just wanted our listeners to be able to hear from Ren and hear about her experience. WENDY GROUNDS:  And questions about the PMP exam, as well. BILL YATES:  Yes, yes. WENDY GROUNDS:  She addresses some of that.  So we’re looking forward to this conversation.  Hey, Ren, thank you so much for joining us today. Meet Ren REN LOVE:  I’m so happy to be here.  Thank you for having me. WENDY GROUNDS:  We want to jump right in and ask you what your current position is. REN LOVE:  So here at Velociteach I am the Manager of Curriculum Development.  So I started off as an instructor for Velociteach for about seven months before being hired full-time.  And I’m in charge of updating and maintaining all of the course materials that we have here at Velociteach. BILL YATES:  That’s all.  There’s not much to that. REN LOVE:  Yeah, it’s a lot more than what it sounds. BILL YATES:  Yeah, never a boring moment, that’s for sure. Ren’s Project Management Journey WENDY GROUNDS:  Tell us a little bit about your career background,

Sometimes a project can feel like a circus when you're having to manage time, cost, and scope as well as stakeholders, team members, and the organization as a whole.

When it comes to problem solving or innovation, the goal is to generate ideas, make those ideas better, and then implement them. But what if we are skipping some important stages of the creative problem-solving process? Dr. Teresa Lawrence, an expert on the integration of Creative Problem Solving into project management, joins us to illustrate the importance of understanding our cognitive diversity, knowing our preference to the stages of the creative problem-solving process, and recognizing how our preferences influence project team interactions.

The podcast by project manager for project managers. A great leader strikes a balance between warmth and strength. If it’s time for you to conduct an honest assessment of your leadership style to connect better with your teams and understand your stakeholders more effectively, take a listen to hear how to connect, then lead. Table of Contents 02:47 … Meet Matt04:44 … Social Power and Personal Power06:38 … Knowing your Likeability09:17 … Strength and Warmth12:12 … Strength and Warmth Matrix15:04 … Changing Your Impact17:51 … Make a Stronger Team Connection.20:02 … How Not to Compromise Warmth21:54 … Snap Judgements and First Impressions24:23 … Kevin and Kyle25:20 … Connect with Your Audience27:25 … Preparation is Vital29:44 … Be Your Authentic Self33:03 … Connecting Remotely36:26 … Keeping Energy Levels Stable37:33 … Communicating to Highly Skilled Professionals39:18 … Using Analogies40:05 … Speaking Truth to Positions of Power42:13 … Contact Matt43:57 … Closing MATT KOHUT: Some people tend to go with their strength first, and they backfill on the warmth.  Some people lead with warmth first, and they backfill on the strength.  And it’s sort of like being left-handed or right-handed.  Everybody’s just got a dominant hand.  And as long as you can pick up objects with both of them and not drop them, it’s okay. WENDY GROUNDS:  You’re listening to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  My name is Wendy Grounds, and with me in the studio is Bill Yates and Danny Brewer.  We love having you join us twice a month to be motivated and inspired by project stories, leadership lessons, and advice from industry experts from all around the world.  Our aim is to bring you some support as you navigate your projects.  You can also claim free PDUs, Professional Development Units from PMI by listening to our show.  At the end of the show we will give you advice on how to do that. Today we’re talking to Matt Kohut.  Matt is a co-founder of KNP Communications, and he has 20 years of professional experience writing and preparing speakers for both general and expert audience.  In addition, he has served as a communications consultant to organizations including NASA, the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and Harvard University. Matt is currently a fellow at the Center for Advancement of Public Action at Bennington College, and he’s previously worked at Harvard University as research specialist to the dean of Kennedy School.  Now, this is an interesting conversation, and we are very excited to bring it to you because it follows on so well to our conversation we had with Vanessa Druskat on emotional intelligence. BILL YATES:  Yes, this is an area that I think because of my own experience, I feel like this is an area that a project manager, certainly me, should and can grow in throughout their career.  It’s amazing talking with Matt.  He knows so much about social science.  That’s the background experience he has.  But the advice that he gives is so practical.  Not only did he write speeches, he coached those who were delivering the speeches as to how to make a good first impression, how to connect with their audience, how to not overpower them with too much information.  These are things that project managers struggle with.  These are things that we have to be aware of.  So the advice that Matt gives in our conversation is really going to help us be better at our jobs, connect better with our teams, understand our customers better, and amp up our performance. WENDY GROUNDS:  Hi, Matt.  Welcome to Manage This.  Thank you for being our guest today. MATT KOHUT:  Thanks for having me. Meet Matt WENDY GROUNDS:  We are excited to talk to you about communication and leadership and all of those good things; but I am really intrigued by your other career, the side of you that is a professional bassist.  Can you tell us a little bit about that and your passion for music? ...

The podcast by project managers for project managers. Transformations fail because we are failing to transform our people. In a successful transformation project, it is crucial to manage human behavior and pay attention to aligning culture and strategy. To lead a successful transformation project cultivate a healthy environment that inspires people to follow. Table of Contents 02:06 … Ricardo’s Story04:40 … Transforming Passion into Profession06:20 … Brightline Initiative10:44 … The Failure Rate on Digital Transformations15:54 … When Strong Leadership is a Liability20:18 … Effective Team Collaboration24:32 … Kevin and Kyle25:37 … Aligning Culture and Strategy30:39 … Diversity is More Effective33:26 … Cultivate a Healthy Culture36:17 … Getting Stakeholders Onboard41:33 … Contact Ricardo44:16 … Closing RICARDO VARGAS:  So what happens on digital transformation?  The company say, “We are doing this.  We are transformed.”  And the employee that is there saying, “And so what?  What is in there for me?  What is in there for me?”  And if I don’t see that, what I do?  I will say, you know, “I don’t want to be part of that.” WENDY GROUNDS:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  I’m Wendy Grounds, and in the studio with me is Bill Yates and Danny Brewer.  We love having you join us twice a month to hear about project stories and leadership lessons, as well as advice from industry experts from all around the world.  And we want to bring you some support as you navigate your projects.  We have one such leadership expert with us today. BILL YATES:  We are fortunate to have Ricardo giving us the time and sharing his experience and knowledge with us.  It’s going to be phenomenal. WENDY GROUNDS:  I’m sure many of you have heard of Ricardo Vargas.  He’s an experienced leader in global operations, project management, business transformation, as well as crisis management.  He’s the founder and managing director of Macro Solutions. And he’s also a former chairman of the Project Management Institute, as well as a PMI fellow.  He also tells us a little bit about being the director of project management and infrastructure of the United Nations, leading more than 1,000 projects in humanitarian development projects.  And we talk to him about the Brightline Initiative.  Ricardo created and led this initiative from 2016 to 2020.  He has the Five Minutes podcast, and he gives some excellent project management advice on his podcast. BILL YATES:  Wendy, it’s going to be great to talk with Ricardo and get his input on the human side on digital transformation projects, complex projects, where sometimes we get a bit fascinated with the technology.  And as Ricardo points out, it’s all about the people. WENDY GROUNDS:  Hi, Ricardo.  Welcome to Manage This. RICARDO VARGAS:  Thank you very much.  I’m very glad to be here with you today. Ricardo’s Story WENDY GROUNDS:  We are really honored to have you.  I think it’s been a long time coming that we wanted to talk with you, so we’re honored to have you with us today.  Can you look back and tell me how you got into project management?  What’s your story? RICARDO VARGAS:  No, that’s very interesting because you know my background, I’m a chemical engineer.  And when I was a student of chemical engineering, this was in the early ‘90s.  One of the disciplines I was studying was operational research.  So how do you put things in order, you know, on the production line, on the project.  And that was the first time I met the concept of critical path, of you know, resource leveling. And coincidentally, at that exact time I was working with Microsoft.  I was owner of a partner of Microsoft in Brazil.  And Microsoft was putting an effort on a new tool that they want to roll out in Brazil that was called Microsoft Project.  And they didn’t want anyone to say, “Okay, who can help us to leverage that?”  Because, Excel has mathematics,

The podcast by project managers for project managers. The need for optimal emotional intelligence is even more pronounced in project management and Dr. Vanessa Druskat, who is married to a project manager, shares insights on emotional and team intelligence on how to improve your own EQ. If we can get in touch with an emotion, we can manage it, and the more emotionally and self-aware we are the more we can build emotionally intelligent teams. Table of Contents 02:37 … What is Emotional Intelligence?05:43 … Developing Your Emotional Intelligence07:07 … A Work in Progress08:25 … EQ and Cognitive Intelligence09:20 … The Need for Emotional Intelligence in Projects11:03 … EQ Research Study of Project Managers12:48 … Self-Confidence15:50 … Kevin and Kyle16:54 … Emotional Intelligence Starts with Self-Awareness19:09 … The Brain Science behind Emotional Intelligence21:03 … The Emotional Brain at the Unconscious Level23:53 … No Motivation without Emotion25:59 … Managing Oneself29:44 … Social Harmony34:45 … Find Out More36:42 … Closing VANESSA DRUSKAT:  And so the kind of norms that create space for people so that everyone can have the synergy, the kind of habits you create build an emotionally intelligent environment, and are more likely to have harmony and synergy and really produce.  You can produce results without that, but they’re not going to be synergistic.  They’re not going to be as good, WENDY GROUNDS:  You’re listening to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  My name is Wendy Grounds, and with me in the studio is Bill Yates and Danny Brewer.  We love to have you join us twice a month to be motivated and inspired by project stories and leadership lessons and advice from industry experts from around the world. And just one of those industry experts is Vanessa Druskat.  Vanessa is a multi-award-winning behavioral scientist, and she’s an internationally recognized expert on leadership and team development.  She has a research program examining the differences between the behavioral strategies of high- and average-performing work teams.  And this led her to pioneer the concept of team emotional intelligence. Vanessa has a popular Harvard Business Review article with S. Wolff on emotionally intelligent teams.  She’s a member of the board of directors of the Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence in Organizations, and she talks a little bit about that at the end of the podcast.  And she’s also an associate professor at the University of New Hampshire’s Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics.  So you may have gathered we’re talking about emotional intelligence. BILL YATES:  Yes, we are.  This is such a critical skill for project leaders, for project managers because we all know it.  We can’t do this on our own.  We’ve got to work with a team.  Sometimes that team, each one of the team members brings their own issues to the table.  We’ve got our own issues.  You bring in the issues of our customer, the issues of our contractors, and there’s just a lot to manage. WENDY GROUNDS:  There’s a lot of issues. BILL YATES:  There’s a lot of issues.  So we need to be more emotionally intelligent and figure out how to get things done. WENDY GROUNDS:  Hi, Vanessa.  Welcome to Manage This. VANESSA DRUSKAT:  Thank you.  It’s wonderful to be here with you, Wendy. WENDY GROUNDS:  Yeah, we’re very happy to have you as our guest, and this is definitely a topic we’ve wanted to talk about again.  And I think you bring such a fresh perspective.  And Bill and I were very excited when we found out your husband was a project manager. BILL YATES:  Yeah. WENDY GROUNDS:  So you definitely speak with some authority on this topic. VANESSA DRUSKAT:  Yes, indeed.  I’ve heard plenty of stories from my husband. BILL YATES:  I’ll bet. VANESSA DRUSKAT:  Some difficult times. BILL YATES:  Yes. What is Emotional Intelligence? WENDY GROUNDS:  Yeah.

The podcast by project managers for project managers. The FIFA World Cup is the biggest sporting event in the world. With billions of people tuning in to view the games, we wondered if anyone noticed the grass! In this unique project story, John Holmes explains how he navigated the selection process and became the exclusive supplier of turfgrass for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. We share the planning, logistics, challenges, constraints and lessons learned in this remarkable project. Table of Contents 02:18 … Meet John03:41 … Atlas Turf Production05:22 … Sustainable Solutions06:53 … The Bid for The FIFA World Cup Turf09:23 … Transporting the Turf11:46 … Project Coordination and Planning14:12 … Kevin and Kyle15:41 … Project Budget16:57 … Project Timeline18:47 … Biggest Risk Factor19:39 … Collaborations and Cultural Differences21:43 … Government Restrictions22:38 … Lessons Learned23:56 … Soccer vs. Golf Turf25:52 … Leadership Advice from John27:30 … Find out More28:33 … Closing JOHN HOLMES: I’ve been really fortunate to travel to some very unique places.  And it’s really helped me grow as a person, and meeting folks from different cultures, nationalities, different beliefs than me.  But at the end of the day, everybody’s a human being and has the same struggles, similar struggles.  I try to be very respectful, too.  And I think that’s so important when you’re dealing with different cultures.  Well, at the end of the day in a business deal, everybody’s trying to get to the same point and having a successful project.  And figuring out a way to do it without animosity, without any issues is so important and makes things go very smoothly. WENDY GROUNDS:  You’re listening to Manage This, the podcast for project managers by project managers.  My name is Wendy Grounds, and with me in the studio is Bill Yates and our engineer, Danny Brewer.  We love having you join us twice a month to be motivated and inspired by project stories, leadership lessons, and advice from industry experts from all around the world; and we love to bring you some support as you navigate your projects.  You can also claim free Professional Development Units from PMI by listening to our show.  Listen up at the end of the show for advice on how to do that. Now, Bill, we have an interesting conversation with John Holmes today. BILL YATES:  Yes. WENDY GROUNDS:  He’s from Atlas Turf.  Atlas Turf produced the grass for some of the world’s premier golf associations.  And I love the story that he was responsible for the turf that was used in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. BILL YATES:  Isn’t that amazing, yeah.  And he happens to be – their company is headquartered here in Georgia.  But he has delivered product and solutions all over the globe.  He’s had a lot of personal travel.  I’d like to see his passport and see some of the stamps in that. WENDY GROUNDS:  And he also has been in places like Sri Lanka, Mauritius, the Maldives, New Caledonia, Seychelles.  It’s all over the world into very interesting places he’s taking his grass. BILL YATES:  That’s true.  He delivers.  WENDY GROUNDS:  Hi, John.  Welcome to Manage This.  Thank you so much for joining us today. JOHN HOLMES:  So glad to be here and able to share our unique story. Meet John WENDY GROUNDS:  Have you always worked with turf?  What was your career path? JOHN HOLMES:  I have a degree in turf grass management.  But my career started when I was a teenager working on the local golf course in our town.  And in doing so I discovered that you could actually go to college and get a degree in managing turf grass, and I did that and became a golf course superintendent, managing the turf grass on a golf course, almost 32 years ago. BILL YATES:  How about that.  So you’ve been working with grass for 30-something years.  And then how did you come to Atlas, you know, what was that transition? JOHN HOLMES:  My career as a golf course superintendent took me and my wife to Mexico and...

The podcast by Project Managers for Project Managers. What do you do when you inherit a problem project? Hear about a stalled project that was threatening the accreditation of a popular city zoo. Our guest, Megan Young, inherited this project with no knowledge of the requirements, and with no plan or clear scope. Hear her advice on prioritizing, budget planning, addressing scope creep, negotiating tips, and team motivation. Table of Contents 02:41 … Greenville City Projects03:33 … Getting PMP Certified05:39 … Valuable Project Manager Skills07:20 … Addressing a Stalled Zoo Project10:31 … Tackling the Challenges12:36 … Building Trust with Stakeholders15:11 … How to Prioritize17:10 … Software Installation Projects19:27 … Kevin and Kyle20:42 … Budget Planning24:20 … Negotiating Tips26:32 … Addressing Scope Creep28:15 … Keeping the Team Motivated30:26 … Dealing with team Conflict32:40 … Megan’s Motivation33:45 … Contact Megan34:28 … Closing MEGAN YOUNG: You can learn a lot by just showing up onsite and having a conversation with somebody.  People will talk to you when they’re comfortable in their space. And a lot of times that means just going out and standing beside them.  I mean, when I was in the Parks Department, sometimes it meant helping somebody put a bench together.  And they would talk to you in that process and you’d kind of hear the good, the bad, and the ugly.  But a lot of times it was the most valid of the truth that you were hearing. WENDY GROUNDS:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  Thank you for joining us today.  My name is Wendy Grounds, and joining me in the studio is Bill Yates.  We want to take a moment to specially say thanks to our listeners who reach out to us and leave comments on our website or on social media.  We love hearing from you, and we always appreciate your positive ratings and reviews on whichever podcast listening app you use. Our guest today is Megan Young.  She currently serves as the Assistant Manager to the City Manager for the City of Greenville, South Carolina.  Prior to joining the City Manager’s Office, Megan was the Parks and Grounds Administrator for the City of Greenville.  Megan is a certified project management professional and certified park and recreation professional. During her time in the PRT department, Megan led the implementation of the Cityworks program as a work and asset management system.  She managed large and small-scale infrastructure projects and was integral in the successful reaccreditation of the Greenville Zoo in 2020.  And she’s going to tell us a bit about that project today. BILL YATES:  I’m excited about this.  We are going to talk about the zoo.  We’re going to talk about spider monkeys.  We’re going to talk about parks and recreation.  And I’ve got to go ahead and just let you know, too, this is near and dear to my heart because I went to Furman University, which is in Greenville, South Carolina.  Now, I graduated in 1980 [mumbling] something. WENDY GROUNDS:  It’s a while back, yeah. BILL YATES:  Yeah, yeah, yeah.  And Greenville at that time was just not cool.  It is super cool now.  And a lot of it is because of Megan and the team there at the City of Greenville and what they’ve done.  They’ve got an amazing Liberty Bridge and Falls Park area.  There’s the Swamp Rabbit Trail which my wife and I have actually ridden bikes on and walked along.  It’s just beautiful.  So Megan’s going to talk to us about a number of parks and different projects that they’ve done.  But this is, again, it’s special to me because she’s talking about an area that is a rich part of my history. WENDY GROUNDS:  Yeah, that’s really cool.  I’ve driven through Greenville.  I’ve never stopped there, but I think after this podcast I’m definitely going to take a stop next time I plan on driving through. BILL YATES:  Definitely. WENDY GROUNDS:  Hi, Megan.  Welcome to our podcast. MEGAN YOUNG:  Hi,

The podcast by project managers for project managers. Situated at the most heavily trafficked public space in the world, Times Square in New York is undergoing an extraordinary renovation and expansion project.  Hear how the iconic Palace Theatre was raised 30 feet to make room for commercial space below. The goal of this complex project was to preserve the historic theater box, which was built in 1913, and raise it to its new home on the third floor of TSX Broadway. Table of Contents 02:16 … Intro to the Project03:12 … Raising a Theater04:42 … The TSX Broadway Project06:56 … Seeing the Vision08:34 … Major Stakeholders10:24 … Retained Slab Project11:47 … Effective Collaboration14:26 … The Hydraulic Lifting18:58 … Project Timeline20:27 … Kevin and Kyle22:00 … Monitoring the Lift24:53 … A Coordinated Effort25:38 … Lessons Learned27:40 … Advice for Project Managers29:08 … Find out More30:39 … Closing ROBERT ISRAEL: But I think the most important thing that I have been successful at is planning.  If you’re a good project manager, you know how to plan.  And if you can think three steps ahead of where you need to be, you’re going to be a successful project manager.  WENDY GROUNDS:  Hello, and welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  Thank you for joining us.  I am Wendy Grounds, and in the studio with me is Bill Yates.  If you like what you hear, we’d love to hear from you.  You can leave us a comment on our website, Velociteach.com; on social media; or whichever podcast listening app you use.  If you have any questions about our podcasts or about project management certifications, we’d love to hear from you. Our guest today is Robert Israel.  He’s an executive vice president at L&L Holding Company.  Robert leads and directs all aspects of the TSX Broadway project development’s design and construction.  Previously, Robert was the cofounder of Solid Development Group.  He has also served as a project director for RFR Holding, and he has served in various management roles at CBRE.  But it’s his project that we are most excited to hear about.  And I’m going to let Bill tell you more about that. BILL YATES:  Oh, man.  We are so excited about this.  We are delighted to have Robert as our guest because he has been instrumental in this $2.5 billion TSX Broadway project.  And the piece that we want to focus on is the raising of the Palace Theatre.  So we’ll talk about all aspects of it, but especially this historic theater, it’s a 1,700-seat theater that was opened in 1913, and it was on the ground floor.  Well, Wendy, it’s not on the ground floor anymore.  This thing has been raised 30 feet.  We’re going to talk about how you do that in a very busy Times Square with a historic building and all of the complexity that went into that.  Robert was right in the middle of it.  He’s got some amazing tips and tricks and advice that he’ll share. WENDY GROUNDS:  And also it’s not just the raising of the theater, which is the main thing we talk about; but it’s all the other components that are going into this building in New York.  Hi, Robert.  Welcome to Manage This.  Thank you so much for talking with us today. ROBERT ISRAEL:  Thanks for having me.  Appreciate you guys inviting me on. Intro to the Project WENDY GROUNDS:  Yeah, we’re looking forward to hearing more about this project.  Just as an introduction, can you tell us a little bit about L&L Holding and how long you’ve been working for the company? ROBERT ISRAEL:  Sure.  I’ve been working at L&L Holding for just over five years.  I came onboard with L&L in 2017, just as we were sort of awarded the project, TSX Broadway.  And we spent two years in preconstruction, essentially, and started construction with TSX on the beginning of 2019.  But L&L overall, we own approximately 8 million square feet in New York City, mostly office/retail.  This is our first foray into the hospitality world, really.  And, you know,

The podcast by project managers for project managers. The creative problem-solving process is far beyond simply generating ideas, and the project manager’s role is critical in the process. Dr. Amy Climer shares how to increase creativity to maximize innovation. Hear how to facilitate the clarify/ideate/develop stages of the creative problem-solving process to a successful implementation. Table of Contents 02:43 … Meet Amy04:00 … “I’m Not Creative!”05:29 … Practice Creativity06:42 … Strengthen Problem Solving Skills07:46 … Solving the Right Problem11:30 … Be Willing to Change Your Mind12:26 … Facing Resistance15:59 … Osborn-Parnes Creative Problem Solving Process17:38 … Creative Problem Solving and The PM22:05 … Kevin and Kyle23:25 … Divergent and Convergent Thinking27:49 … Initiating Ideas28:48 … Suspend Judgement29:30 … Seek Wild Ideas30:09 … Going For Quality31:51 … Convergent Thinking33:06 … Be Deliberate33:53 … Be Affirmative34:31 … Consider Novelty35:01 … Common Mistakes Made in the Process37:51 … Associations and Climer Cards41:27 … Get in Touch with Amy43:42 … Closing AMY CLIMER: ...an important skill of being more creative is being willing to change your mind.  And if you get so fixated on like this is the solution and you ignore all the data that might be coming in, or you don’t want to pay attention to this conversation, then you’re not open to this possibility.  So being open-minded to different perspectives, different solutions is a huge piece of being able to be more creative. WENDY GROUNDS:  Hello, and welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  My name is Wendy Grounds, and in the studio with me is Bill Yates Just a quick thanks to our listeners who reach out to us and leave comments on our website or on social media.  We always love hearing from you.  We know you’re also looking for opportunities to acquire PDUs, your Professional Development Units, towards recertifications.  And you can still claim PDUs for all our podcast episodes.  Listen up at the end of the show for information on how you can claim those PDUs. Our guest today is Dr. Amy Climer, and we’re very excited to talk with her.  She teaches teams and organizations how to increase their creativity so they can maximize innovation.  She works with organizations such as the Mayo Clinic, Stanford University, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.  She has a Ph.D. in Leadership and Change from Antioch University, and she’s developed the Deliberate Creative Team Scale to help teams understand how to increase their creativity.  Amy lives in Asheville, North Carolina, and she’s also the host of The Deliberate Creative Podcast, and we recommend you check that one out.  She shares practical device and strategies to help leaders build innovative teams. BILL YATES:  Wendy, we are so excited to have Dr. Climer on this episode because I think all project managers are looking for a process, a set of steps to go through problem solving.  A creative problem-solving process is what she’s going to walk through with us.  Problems just occur.  They’re going to happen probably every day on our project.  We’ll have some really full risk register, and then one of those risks will occur, and we’ll look at our plan, and we’ll say, “Hey, we thought that was going to happen, and it happened.  We’ll start following that plan.”  And then the plan fails.  And we’re like, okay, all hands meeting.  The team has to get together.  We’ve got another problem to solve.  We need a process to go about that, and Amy’s got great advice for us.  I’m excited about this. WENDY GROUNDS:  Hi, Amy.  Welcome to Manage This.  Thank you for joining us. AMY CLIMER:  Thank you.  I’m very excited about our conversation. Meet Amy WENDY GROUNDS:  I know.  We’re looking forward to this.  This is a topic I’ve been wanting to talk about for some time.  So I’m glad we found you.  And I first want to find out how you got into this whole...