Does it seem strange to you that anyone would love planning projects? Well then perhaps I am a little strange 😀.
I love that feeling of untangling a big, chaotic idea and figuring out what needs to happen for it to be brought to life.
There’s something that happens in my brain when I speak to someone who tells me about an idea they’ve had. My brain instantly perks up and starts thinking. All these questions pop into my head, one by one, things to ask that person to get more information about the idea.
What is the idea? Who’s it aimed at? What does it involve? Does something need to be prepared? Does it need other people to participate in some way? Do people have to pay for it? When will it be available? Is it one thing or a series of things?
And me asking all those questions can help the person with the idea clarify what they’re thinking, and fill in any gaps with aspects they hadn’t considered.
And then once I know the scope of the idea, I come up with even more questions – this time about the details of setting it up and promoting it to people. If I don’t get to ask them the questions for some reason, I can find myself still thinking about the idea later in the day, wondering whether they’ve thought of x or got a supplier to help with y.
Of course my favourite thing is when someone asks me to help them with the untangling and the planning, then I get to write out all those questions and things to consider – and write a timeline and list of things that need to be done.
What is it that I love about this process? I love speaking to enthusiastic people. I love asking questions to find out more. I love collecting together information. I love thinking through what would need to happen to turn the idea into reality. I love writing up some notes, thoughts and plans to give to them. And sometimes I love working with them for longer to help them navigate through the resulting project.
Why do I love planning projects? I don’t know, I just do. It’s the way my brain works, and quite honestly it’s something I’d do even if I wasn’t being paid for it. (Obviously as I’m a freelancer I do need to be paid, so don’t go asking for free work, I will say no!)
Are you a planner or an ideas person?
If you need a project planner or ideas untangler, do have a look at my services and get in touch if you think I could help you.
