The Project Manager’s Little Book of Cheats (Book Review)

(This post contains affiliate hyperlinks. Please read my full disclosure.
Beth Spriggs writes, “There is no cheating in project management.”
It’s been covered in sticky notes.
Practical and useful books are my favorite. It’s funny and easy to read. It is full of truth. I have selected a few of my favorite quotes to share with you.
Talking about how to communicate difficult messages to colleagues
Indecisions are a decision. If you do not take action, you are choosing to accept the behavior as it is. As a manager, it is your responsibility to speak up and point out the problems. The other person can then make the changes. You can’t expect them change unless you tell them what you want.

Management of issues:
When you are the problem solver, problems can be more difficult to solve.
This book is like the hard-earned advice that a mentor would give you. Someone who is willing to tell it as it is, and not worry about what others think.

Wide-ranging Advice
This book does not follow the traditional project management cycle as many other similar texts. It’s instead organized thematically with chapters on communication and change, scope, risk, time, risks, processes, portfolios. Teams, tools, vendors, and teams. You will also find information about starting a project (that is the only reference to the life cycle).
Each section of a chapter is numbered, making it easy for you to navigate and allowing you to find the right advice for you.
It is difficult to say what inspired Beth to include these topics in her book. Some topics, such as expectation inflation, aren’t often covered but are fascinating.
Several, such as the answer to the question “What qualifications does PMI offer?” seem to be oddly opposed to solid leadership advice.
However, I am certain that different readers will be able to take different things out of the book.
The Little Book of Cheats makes a great gift for someone starting out as a project manager apprentice or starting their first full-time job in project management.
Beth was kind enough send me a copy her book to review. Amazon has The Project Managers Little Book of Cheats.
You can read more book reviews on project management here.