Making It Happen: A Non-Technical Guide to Project Management

20.3. Who Gets Rewarded?

By the evening of March 25, I was sitting on my in-laws' porch, enjoying the spring that was already well under way, and remarking on the surprising smoothness of the execution. Martha just chuckled. "Just like everyone else, Will, you probably expected that the execution would be the most stressful time of all."

"That's how it has always been for me in the past! Now I'm nervous because everything is going so well."

"That's an attitude you're going to have to change, Willie," she told me as she crammed some tobacco into her pipe. "With proper preparation, the execution should be boring, with no surprises. It's better that way, because the execution is where most of the money gets spent." She paused. "Why is it so difficult for people to understand? A clearly defined assignment followed by a well specified design and a detailed, useful execution plan results in a boring, asplanned, execution."

"Well, I suppose—"

"I'll tell you why, Will," she continued as if I wasn't there. "Society rewards those who are incompetent enough to create crises, and then lucky enough tomuddle through them. We don't reward planned success; we want the quick fix, the lucky break, the Slim-Quick-Easy- Diet Solution!" Martha was almost starting to foam at the mouth, so I thought I should try and calm her down.

"That may be true, Martha, but I'm getting nothing but praise from the higher-ups at Hyler. They're very impressed with what your ideas have allowed us to accomplish."

"Humph!" ...