Effective leadership is important for projects – no one disputes that and a quick online search will throw up plenty of survey results that position leadership as one of the key factors for project success.

However, leadership is hard work. It’s also very stressful. I hear a lot about ‘being a leader’ but I don’t think the discussion is wide enough. We also need to talk about how to cope with being a project leader because it’s difficult, especially if you don’t have a lot of experience at the top.

One of the first things to do when you start a new project is to work out what it actually involves. As well as all the workshops about requirements and the documentation that results, there are some other things to investigate as part of your project scope.

Sit down with your project sponsor or other key users on the project and go through this checklist of 7 questions you should be asking about your project scope. They’ll appreciate that you have taken the time to ask and you’ll get a much better understanding of what they are expecting the project to deliver on their behalf.

When you find yourself leading a new project team, you might be working with people who haven’t done projects before. These stakeholders need to know how the project is going to operate and what they can expect from you.

Here are the things that you should discuss with them as soon as you can, so you’ve got a clear starting point on how you will be working together. Consider these the rules of engagement, if you will!