Prioritizing Creative Projects

How To Prioritize Your Creative Projects

After we unpack the ideas, we are now ready to move forward; this is a critical stage in our creativity journey. As we discussed at the beginning of this series, too many ideas can create a feeling of overload, and that can lead to negative consequences such as procrastination. 

It is also tempting to have many ideas, where all seem to shine, so the real challenge is how to resist this temptation when necessary and focus on the main idea.

The following explains more about how you choose your ideas:

1. Alignment with Goals: Whether personal or professional, you need to make sure that your selected ideas align well with your goals. Ideas that don’t align with these goals might sometimes be appealing, but they can distract you from what’s more important.
2.  Potential for Success: You should not only ask yourself how likely this idea will succeed but also whether it will create a real impact. This part of the evaluation requires that you separate your emotions and be truly honest with yourself. That is because the next step will be easier if you have already made the right decision by choosing your ideas wisely and carefully. Here are some tips on how to evaluate your ideas:

• Demand or need in the market: Is there an audience or potential market for this idea, or a pressing need or a problem worth solving?

• Feasibility: Do you have the resources, whether financial, time, or skills, to implement this idea? For example, if your goal is to create a podcast, do you have all the necessary equipment, time to record, and marketing knowledge?

• The innovative part of the idea: You need to ask yourself the following: Will my idea introduce something new or have any innovation potential? If not, what is the point of creativity, then? I

• Return on Investment: One similar aspect of evaluation that is also related to business is the return on investment. Here, you may ask the following questions:

• What will you get if you implement this idea?
• Will it increase your experience? Will it make you a financial profit? Or maybe it will give you personal satisfaction?
• If the idea provides a great return for the investment of time or effort it requires, it is worth giving priority.

• Time needed to implement the idea: It is worth mentioning that not all good ideas require a lot of time for implementation. Some can be implemented in a short period, yet create high results. Therefore, you need to ask yourself the following questions:

• How long will it take to implement this idea?

• Resources required: Do you have the resources currently available to start the project, or do you need to wait for them to become available? Some ideas, even if they are great, may need to be postponed if they require time or financial investments that you cannot currently meet.

• Ability to motivate and persist: Don’t ignore the personal aspect: Does this idea motivate you? An idea that you are not enthusiastic about may not be the best option, even if it makes sense. Creativity requires passion and a desire to continue, so make sure that the idea motivates you enough to continue working on it until the end.

•  Risks vs. Benefits: You have to balance the risks and benefits. Some ideas may have high potential but carry great risks. For instance, if you plan to establish an online course, you might need to assess the risks and benefits because it requires significant upfront effort before you can see any revenues.

You should ask yourself questions, such as:What are the potential risks? Are there chances of failure? Can you handle these risks if they materialize?What is the return if it succeeds? Is the risk worth it?

Ideas that carry high risks but great rewards may be worthwhile, but they require careful evaluation and a willingness to take those risks.

How to Set Goals and Deadlines

This step is another determining factor for success. You might have heard of the S.M.A.R.T.  Goals framework. It was first introduced by George T. Doran in 1981 in his article ‘There’s a S.M.A.R.T. Way to Write Management’s Goals and Objectives,”. This framework is a widely used tool for setting effective and measurable objectives. Here is what they stand for:

• Specific: Goals should be clear. For example, instead of saying “I want to finish my writing project,” you can set a goal such as “I want to write three chapters of a book within this month.”
• Measurable: You should be able to measure progress. This can be difficult sometimes, depending on the project you are doing. However, you should be creative in finding the best ways to measure your project. For example, in business, you can simply look at numbers, sales, or customers gained as a measurement.

• Achievable: Your goals should align with your abilities and available resources. Always remember that impossible goals can lead to frustration. Therefore, set goals that you can achieve with whatever resources you have currently. The best way to summarize this is by Theodore Roosevelt’s quote: “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

• Relevant: This means that your goal should have something to do with your bigger plan, project, or career path. Goals that don’t fit in any of your important boxes might make you lose interest eventually.
• Time-bound: As we explained above, it is very important to set a deadline for smaller projects. This is achievable by breaking goals into daily, weekly, or monthly achievable tasks. The deadlines should be realistic for each goal. The timeframe should be based on your actual workload and your ability to commit. Moreover, don’t set impossible timelines. You can use time management tools if you struggle with managing your time naturally.

How to Create a Project Plan

A clear and well-thought-out plan is essential in the process of turning your ideas into successful projects. The plan is not only a map that you will follow, but it also helps you organize your efforts and the resources you need to make your project a tangible goal.

The following are some practical tips that will help you create a good plan. However, it is important to know that the strategies below may require adaptation depending on your field and goals:

1. Have a clear vision and set a final goal

 This must be done at the beginning of your project. As simple as this might seem, it is not easy for many people to abide by this rule. If you have many goals, you might end up achieving none of them.

If you set a general goal, you will likely be stuck in creating endless and unfocused ideas and plans. On the other hand, a clear target means specific ideas that have a higher chance of turning them into reality. Therefore, it is important to start by defining your project’s final, clear, and measurable goal. For example, a content creator could be reaching a thousand subscribers within one month.

• Divide the project into stages

It is quite important that you divide your project into smaller projects. These could represent the important steps that lead to your final goal. A common example is when writing a book; the stages typically are as follows:

• Conduct thorough research about the topics that you will cover throughout this book.
• Starting the writing process, where you lay out your first draft.
• Editing and proofreading.
• Finalizing by designing the cover.

When designing your goal, make sure you can identify all requirements at each step.

• Identify your daily or weekly tasks

After dividing the project into stages, it is now time to set up the daily and weekly tasks that will lead you to finish each stage. This part of the process will help you progress continuously, so set your timetable and be ready to move forward.

• Create a flexible schedule

Deadlines are essential; However, the schedule should have some flexibility in case you need to adjust them. There should be a separate schedule for each stage of the project. This schedule should also be realistic in terms of how much time each part of the work will take.

Be careful not to fall into the trap of generalization, because each task is different and the time it consumes. Therefore, you need to be as specific and realistic as possible. For example, if your goal is to finish one chapter of a book in a month, divide that month into weeks or days. And set a deadline to finish each topic that you will cover in that chapter. That is because some topics might be easier and faster to write about than others.

•  Identify and allocate all the resources you might need:

Each phase of your project will have certain requirements and resources. This could be financial, time, or human resources, depending on the nature of your project. It is vital to determine what resources you need and make sure you are fully prepared to start your next move.

In this stage, you might face some challenges, especially if you are working with a team. That is because not everyone will be fully ready at the same time, so if that is the case, make sure that everyone is ready and fully aware of what is needed. It is always good to double-check on such things because a small delay or error might cost you time and money or at least cause confusion. 

• Conduct periodic reviews and make adaptations when necessary

It is quite essential to make a continuous review of the project plan. These reviews show you the challenges and where you may need to make adjustments. It is also important to conduct reviews because they will enable you to evaluate your progress and whether it was made according to the already set track.

Suggested Framework for Creating a Project Plan

Below are some important questions that you will need to answer when creating a coherent project plan:

• Ultimate Goal: What is the big goal you want to achieve?
• Major Milestones: What are the big steps that need to be taken to achieve the goal?
• Daily/Weekly Tasks: What are the small steps that need to be completed to achieve each phase?
• Deadlines: When should each phase be completed?
• Resources: What tools, money, or people do you need to achieve each phase?
• Review and Adapt: ​​How will you review your progress and adapt the plan based on circumstances?

To sum up, remember that as important as creating a solid project plan, it is vital to implement the plan and adhere to it as much as possible.