Why “A Project Manager’s Field Notes” exists

Linking the philosophical and ancient wisdoms to project management for enhanced reflection, deliveries and leadership

At 09:30 the “quick sync” or backlog check starts. By 10:02 the decision or the priorities still isn’t clear, and you already feel your afternoon will be heavy. If you know that feeling, this publication is for you.

A Project Manager’s Field Notes is where I turn real moments from PM delivery life—messy meetings, shifting scope, emotions under pressure—into calm, practical steps. Each note blends three lenses:

• Project management craft (what we do),

• Philosophies like Stoicism & Taoism etc. (how we show up),

• Practices grounded in proven experience and research evidence (what actually works under pressure).

My aim is simple: one story → one tool or reflection you can use to improve today.

---

What you’ll get

Free (everyone)

• Monday essay (story + one actionable idea).

• Thursday “field note” (short, practical nudge).

• Occasional open threads.

• Occasional additional “field notes”

Paid (full access)

• Everything above + the Template Library (new tool monthly),

• Members-only downloads and walkthroughs,

• Full archive (no paywalls).

Founding members

• Everything in paid + a quarterly 45-minute Field Lab (live, recorded, recording sent to all founding members), priority Q&A.

(If you’re on the free list and want the downloads, you can upgrade any time from the button below.)

---

Why Stoicism and Taoism here?

Because calm is a competitive advantage in projects. Stoicism teaches the dichotomy of control—focus energy only where it changes outcomes. Taoism reminds us to choose flow over force—smaller batches, less fight, more progress.

This isn’t about slogans. It’s about usable mindset and moves that reduce friction on Tuesday at 14:00.

---

Example of what the research says (and how we’ll use it)

• Bad meetings leave “hangovers.” Large samples show many meetings create lingering drops in engagement and productivity that can last hours; more than half of workers report negative spillover. We’ll fix that with better meeting craft. Harvard Business Review+1

---

Today’s tool (free): the 60-second Stoic reset

Before your next meeting:

1. Name the outcome (1 sentence): “A decision on X.”

2. Split the field (two columns in your notebook):

   • In my control: prep, agenda questions, who speaks first, timebox.

   • Not in my control: personalities, the weather, last-minute escalations.

3. Pick one lever from the “In my control” column and spend your energy on it, for example prepare the agenda, think through the time boxing, set a 30-second move at the beginning of the meeting (e.g., “Open with the decision rule and the 3 questions”).

The obstacle is not the meeting itself; it’s our mindset and how we craft the meeting.

---

What’s next

Next Monday: “The status meeting that became a standstill.” We’ll dissect a real scenario and ship the Question-Agenda with a detailed example.

If this sounds useful, join as a paid member to get the downloads and full archive—or as a Founding Member if you want to support the work and join the quarterly Field Lab. Either way, I’m glad you’re here.