How is being a project manager like teaching?

A friend of mine recently purchased a large Victorian home in a small town.  His intent was to turn this lovely icon into his workplace, i.e., law offices.  One afternoon I joined him and his wife for lunch where they began to share with me what has be a lifelong dream of owning their own office space and expanding their practice with their son. .

Talk quickly turned to the building and keeping the flavor of the Victorian home while creating an inviting non-sterile office space.  Doing what all good teachers do, I asked questions, posed problems, and showed interest in what seemed to be an insurmountable task.

Before the entrée was complete, we were talking about architecture, colors, and the reasons for staying true to Historical Society’s requirements.  By the time the check came, I found myself saying yes to a project that would consume my thoughts, dreams, and time for the next nine months.

Contractors, electricians, painters and such were asking me to make decisions.  Budget and ADA requirement codes were being assessed. Soon, I began to wonder, how did this happen to someone that offered to choose paint colors and how can an elementary art teacher become a project manager?

Now, as I sit back and take in the fruits of my labor, I have to ask myself in what ways these two jobs strangely similar.

10 ways that being a project manager is like being a teacher:

1.       Have patience.

2.       Bring together a group of people to complete the task.

3.       Follow a schedule and keep a deadline.

4.       Organize supplies within a budget.

5.       Submit plans for approval.

6.       Make decisions on the spot.

7.       Communicate with superiors on a regular basis.

8.       Be flexible and make changes when necessary.

9.       Work and manage many different personalities.

10.   Enjoy yourself!

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Cultivating the elements and principles of art…..

I have spent the past three days in my garden. I never thought I would say those words. I was perfectly content to spend the days reading the latest novel or sketching my current inspiration. Seven years ago my husband and I moved to a new home after 21 years of residing in the “house we would never sell”. Due to extenuating circumstances life brought us to a new place with a new purpose. My first thought was what will I do, my second was I can’t handle this, my third being o.k. let’s tackle this yard!

Our home consists of many different sloped or hillside areas. Yard maintenance was a priority and the only thing to do was garden that which you cannot cut. And so I developed one of my largest passions and the biggest perennial garden of my imagination seeing that I knew nothing about perennial as well as gardening in general.

So, today, as I ice my aching knee, I wonder how did I get to this happy place of loving to be in my garden/s? Logically the answer is art. Color, texture, repetition, balance are all a part of the scope of my garden which has become my spring and summer work of art. I love that I can use repetition of colors and plants, add different textures for interest and create a focal point with things that are growing and living. I also enjoy nurturing and pruning into shapes and the scale that seems to fit the landscape.

Nature and gardening are natural, art and the elements and principles are natural. Equating the two and finding the balance that helps me to express as well as create is what it is all about.