“Focus some attention on your people and knowing those people, and understanding what their core strengths are because those are their drivers. Those are the things that really motivate them to show up and get stuff done.”

If you lead projects, you’ve likely had battles with motivation in project management—whether it’s to find motivation to complete your own work, or to mobilize an entire team to meet a goal successfully. You may have won a battle here and there, but sometimes it can feel like the topic of motivation can become an all-out war. But by instilling some basic values and using some helpful tools to help you figure out what motivates people, you can win that war before it even starts. On this episode, Brett interviews Ruth Pearce, who is an accomplished project manager and coach, and the author of Be a Project Motivator: Unlock the Secrets of Strengths-Based Project Management. In conversation, they cover:

• Strengths-based project management
• The strengths that PMs possess
• Techniques used to motivate team members (and yourself)
• How to you keep your team motivated in the face of tight deadlines or other challenges
• How to build influence
• Quick tips and tactics to keep people motivated

Resources mentioned in this episode

• Be a Project Motivator: Unlock the Secrets of Strengths-Based Project Management
• VIA Character strengths survey (this is a free link for our listeners)
• Ruth Pearce’s website (includes a blog and other valuable resources)
• Article on ProjectManagement.com: Team building for success - from the Project Manager up! 
• Article on ProjectManagement.com: Shifting Change: Insider Tips from Project Leaders
• PMWorld 360 E-zine