I often apply the basics of my outdoor experience to project management. When I’m in the backcountry, as one example, I like to feel at ease, free of stress, yet still accomplished. The same goes with work. As I maintain efficiency, I ought to enjoy my job yet not be engaged in unhealthy stressors.

When someone gets lost, seriously injured, or even dies in the outdoors, it is (in most cases) due to human error. People lose the trail when they fail to have navigation devices, get dehydrated because they don’t have enough water, get hypothermia because they don’t have enough clothing.

On the other hand, when someone is prepared with both proper gear and efficient knowledge, outdoor experiences can be very rewarding. When I go backpacking, there are two questions I ask myself before I do anything else. Does my pack fit? Is it too heavy? Before managing a project, these same questions can be asked.

Does My Pack Fit?

First, when hiking without the proper strap adjustments on a pack, its weight can be distributed in places that can permanently damage your body, and sometimes, it’s only five minutes into a trail that your back starts to ache and heart starts to burn. Soon enough, you want give up.

Similarly, project managers must distribute the weight of a project evenly upon themselves. If a work load is pushed upon someone in the wrong way, it is unhealthy for a business, even damaging. If a manager doesn’t properly "strap" the project on, so to speak, the company can lose its breath very quickly. Then, as one project manager falls behind, he or she may cause the rest of the company to stall. I’ve been on excursions that have been canceled because of one backpacker’s bad weight distribution. Similarly, I’ve seen businesses collapse because of one poor decision.

Is My Pack Too Heavy?

In backpacking, even if the straps are proper, if the load is too heavy or too bulky, the trip destination will seem a long way off. At steep uphill moments, you can hardly keep going. Then, if you thought downhill would be a relief, the weight of the pack causes your knees to buckle. Having guided many trips and having years of experience in the outdoor industry, I have noticed that the most common mistake made in packing gear is excess. More precisely, it is the little bits and pieces that contribute to the excess – extra comforts and careless add-ons. For example, someone might take a ten pound lawn chair on a fifty miler. The same person might take a whole bag of candy on an overnighter. He or she might take blankets, even though blankets weigh more and aren’t as heat effective as sleeping bags. Although just one or two items may appear insignificant (Even down to a toothbrush that’s too big), it all adds up very fast. Especially when it’s going on your back.

Projects fail in similar ways – with extra comforts and careless add-ons. A business owner could get too excited about branded t-shirts, coffee mugs, and banners when the company name isn’t even trademarked yet. A project manager could plan a concert with the most popular artists, yet completely ignore advertising. So what if U2 is coming to the local venue? No one even knows about it; you’ve packed too much weight.

In project management, a manager must consider what is most important first (fit the pack) evaluate it (pack it), then decide what to do (start hiking). If having those extra comforts is wanted and can be managed effectively, then the project manager should be fully prepared to carry it out, knowing the consequences. After all, there are other people invested in that project. But, in the end, for some people, carrying a heavy lawn chair is worth the extra weight. Especially after those twenty-five mile days.