8 Ways To Apply A New Perspective To A Dragging Project

When you’re working on a big project, taking a real break is important for mental productivity. 

Stop the project you’re working on, take some real time away, and come back to it with a fresh mindset. It doesn't matter how long the break is, the important thing is to not think about your project during your time of rest.

A common reason for feeling stuck on a project is because there’s too much information to process, causing you to lose clarity on your end goal.

Mind mapping is a visual note-taking style to help you get your ideas out on paper. Essentially, you’re making a map of how all of your ideas relate to one another. Start with one central idea, like the overall project goal or just a piece of it. From there, think about the major tasks, goals, or ideas behind the projects.

Getting out of the space you associate with your project can help bring an unexpected shift in your perspective.

Try to get away from the setting you’ve been working in. Do you work from home? Try a new location like a coffee shop, library, or coworking space. Work in an office? Go offsite with your team.

Doing something fun or creative helps boost productivity.

You don’t even have to get completely outside the lines of your project to make it work. Instead, think of ways to add creativity to your project.

Ask someone who neither works with you nor knows anything about the specifics of your work, if you can present your project up to its current status to them.

Explain your thought process, your main goals, and the questions you’re trying to answer. Ask them to take notes and to be honest with their feedback.

Take a step back and analyze the difficulties you’re having by answering these questions:

• What is the overall goal of this project?
• What am I trying to solve?
• What is the easiest part of this project?
• What is the hardest part of this project?
• What are my team’s strengths in this project?
• What are my team’s weaknesses?
• What are the actionable steps I can take in the next day, week, and month, to get this project on the right track?

Hiring new people will bring an outside perspective and ideas to your team. Make sure to encourage them to speak up.

The same rule can apply for an individual project, so consider this tactic next time you’re feeling like an island of one.

Instead of focusing on the details, sometimes it’s helpful to zone out and look at the bigger picture. So try answering the "why" questions:

• Why are you doing this project?
• How does it affect the overall bottom line of your organization?
• Why are you working on the project and how is your skillset being used within the project?
• Most importantly: what problem are you trying to solve through this project?