Hope is NOT a Plan

I originally recorded "You're a Project Manager and You Don't Even Know It" in October 2020. I'm re-releasing it based on a message I received on Reddit from a Teacher looking to transition into Project Management.

Find the Project Management Experience Tracker on my website at https://hopeisnotaplan.org/tools/

Hey there, friend. It’s Kevin. Welcome back to the Hope is NOT a Plan podcast. Today, I want to have a little check-in with you. It’s like a virtual wellness consult, just you and me.

And if you're looking for some resources to help you work through any challenges you might be facing, head over to our website at hopeisnotaplan.org. We've got a whole toolkit of tips, tricks, and inspiration to keep you moving forward. Want to check in directly? Follow me and the show on @hopesnotaplan on X and Instagram. View workouts, cold plunge, and Jiu Jitsu videos on the Hope is NOT a Plan YouTube channel.

"For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted…" - Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

It is said that Ecclesiastes was written by King Solomon in response to Proverbs in the Bible. In it, King Solomon’s point is that life is not so simple as to fear God and choose wisdom. While important, it is also vital for us to go through journeys, hardships, and seasons, if you will.

In this episode, we'll discuss the importance of understanding and embracing these seasons and provide actionable tips for navigating them effectively.

1. Accept and acknowledge what season of life we are in
2. Embrace that season without too much harsh self-judgement
3. Get to planning and prepare for the next season

Thank you all for listening, subscribing, and sharing the podcast with someone you think this may help.

Stay safe, accept, and move through your seasons of life with hope as fuel and action as a transformative force, and I wish you all Godspeed.

Often, it feels like we don’t have time to exercise. We have to get the kids ready for school, or we have an early meeting, or maybe we’re traveling early. On today’s Fitness Friday, Five Workouts You Can Knock Out in 10 Minutes or Less, I’m sharing five quick and effective workouts you can squeeze in in ten minutes or less.

1. Tabata
2. 100 burpees
3. High-rep resistance bands
4. Run 1 mile for time
5. 10 minutes of mindfulness

Learn more about how to build your body, mind, and spirit at hopeisnotaplan.org, follow me on IG and X @hopesnotaplan, and visit the Hope is NOT a Plan YouTube channel for fitness, Jiu Jitsu, and cold plunge videos.

Thanks again and remember to get up, get after it each day, and I wish you all, Godspeed.

Hello and welcome, I’m Kevin Pannell with this episode of the Hope is NOT a Plan podcast, Thriving After Cancer: A Journey of Post-Traumatic Growth. In today’s episode I’ll share what post-traumatic growth is, how it differs from resiliency, and more specifically, how cancer survivors and their families can take actionable steps to turn adversity into opportunity and emerge stronger than ever. 

1. Embrace your emotions
2. Build your support network
3. Set meaningful goals
4. Practice gratitude
5. Embrace lifelong learning

Stay safe, embrace a growth mindset, and Godspeed,

Kevin

Marcus Aurelius said, "It is not death that a man should fear, but rather he should fear never beginning to live."

So, how are you living? Are you living in total comfort? Is that comfort preparing you for tough times that may come? I submit it is not. I submit to you that making yourself get up and get after it in some form, whether Yoga, weights, Jiu Jitsu, etc., will prepare your mind, body, and spirit for challenges life WILL throw are you.

• Get up
• Get after it
• Godspeed

Kevin

So, in my early incident management career as a Planning Section Chief, I'd go with other people after disasters, help find missing people, or plan big sporting events. I was super rigid in the methodology and the tools we used, and I had to hit every step. I was wrong. Fortunately, good friends of mine helped me realize that sometimes we don't need to work on the whole process; we need to meet the needs of those in front of us. This is where Sometimes People Just Need Pizza and Port-o-Johns comes in.

In this episode, I share how to:

1. Focus on relationships first
2. Align the team on outcomes second
3. Combine and align processes third
4. Work together on the how fourth
5. Lastly, set the team loose to get shit done

Until next time...

- Stay safe

- Focus on relationships, then outcomes, then on the shared process

- And Godspeed y’all

Kevin

In Lessons from the Roman Mob and for Project Stakeholders I talk about how around 52BC, the Roman mob was comprised of Plebeians as they were called or working class people. Individually they weren't that powerful, but together, they created a mob that changed the Roman empire. In projects, our stakeholders can start to sew dissent like the Roman mob did.

So, how do we address the mob mentality we see building in project teams and redirect that energy into efficient and collaborative work?

• Listen to hear the mob
• Determine where there are truths and where there is false information
• Address rudeness and unprofessionalism early
• Escalate if needed
• Re-baseline the team and move on

Just as Pompey in ancient Rome quelled the mob, so too can modern project leaders restore order and ensure the project's ultimate success.

I’m Kevin Pannell, Host of the Hope is NOT a Plan podcast. I am an IT Healthcare Project Management Office leader with a background in Public Safety, Special Event planning, and Incident Management and disaster response. In this episode, Hurricane Helene SITREP as of 06OCT2024, I'm providing a numerical snapshot of the impact of Hurricane Helene, the importance of shifting operations and mindset from rescue to recovery mode, and three opportunities for improvement I've observed from afar as a former Planning Section Chief on an All-Hazards Incident Management Team (AHIMT).

How you can help:

• General Guidance
• Contact the State Emergency Management agency
• Cash is king
• Shelf stable food
• Water
• Volunteer
• State Emergency Management Contacts
• North Carolina: https://www.ncdps.gov/how-to-donate
• South Carolina: https://www.scemd.org/news/hurricane-helene-cleanup-in-south-carolina/ 
• Georgia: https://gema.georgia.gov/hurricane-helene 
• Florida: https://www.floridadisaster.org/disaster-updates/storm-updates/ 
• Tennessee: https://www.tn.gov/tema/updates/hurricane-helene.html 
• Virginia: https://www.vaemergency.gov/recover/hurricane-helene 

Thank you to all those that stepped up and stepped into harm's way to help their fellow Americans. Godspeed to the survivors and the fallen. God bless America.

In What You Need to Know About Disaster Response, I provide my insight as a former Firefighter-EMT and Incident Management Team (IMT) member on the early impact of Hurricane Helene, what should be happening on the ground in North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, and how listeners can help those affected by Hurricane Helene.

Focus areas:

• Search and Rescue (SAR)
• Public Safety and Environmental Hazards
• Mass Care and Sheltering
• Infrastructure Assessment and Repair
• Communication and Coordination

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” – 2 Corinthians 4:89

Stay safe people of TN, NC, and VA, don’t give up and help each other, and Godspeed,

Kevin