{"id":7201,"date":"2025-11-26T13:05:33","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T12:05:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web-dev-weissblau.de\/microconsult\/?p=7201"},"modified":"2026-02-14T17:10:58","modified_gmt":"2026-02-14T16:10:58","slug":"project-management-between-naivety-and-self-deception","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.microconsult.de\/en\/projektmanagement-zwischen-naivitaet-und-selbstbetrug\/","title":{"rendered":"Project management between naivety and self-deception"},"content":{"rendered":"

Projects thrive on the belief that the set goal can be achieved. While it's said that faith can move mountains, unfortunately, this belief can also lead to a loss of touch with reality. This loss of touch with reality manifests itself in project work in a variety of ways. The insidious thing is that many of those affected don't notice it at all, or if they do, it's far too late.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Every project begins with an idea that, at least for the genius who conceived it, shines like a bright star. This enlightened individual already envisions the finished work \u2013 triumph seems so near. They are like a hiker who sees the goal of their efforts within reach. In their euphoria, they mistake the distance for the actual distance. Those who rely on hard factors like time and money to bring them back down to earth may well be disappointed.<\/p>\n

The fierce competition for money, time, and other resources doesn't exactly sharpen one's perspective on reality, especially since emotional factors like status, power, and recognition are also at stake. The sober, brooding individual, plagued by the occasional doubt, is at a disadvantage against the confidently optimistic, beaming individual. "Think positive" is the motto. The winner is the beaming individual, who lets project illusions shine with a triumphant smile and cheerful whistling, even if it's just cleverly disguised whistling in the dark. The loser is the sober realist, who first spits in the project's soup and then tries to hand out the spoons. Those who don't take a big risk have little chance of reaching their goal.<\/p>\n

The next opportunity to finally face reality is the project itself. But the shining star and his shining team are naturally reluctant to lose their aura of perfection just because of a few setbacks and discrepancies between planned and actual progress. It's best to keep such minor problems to oneself for the time being. Should the blemish on the pristine project record nevertheless become visible, it's important to project confidence: "We've got everything under control, we'll smooth it out with a few hours of overtime," the ego cheerfully chirps.<\/p>\n

Scientific studies clearly show that the majority of managers intervene too late when projects go awry. The higher the stakes and the more publicly visible the bids for project approval, the greater the likelihood that the gap between aspiration and reality will go unnoticed. Why? The human psyche has a strong tendency to create consistency between promises and results. If this consistency cannot be achieved through actions, the gap is bridged through "correct" interpretation and skillful presentation.<\/p>\n

This rarely happens intentionally (at first), because many signs of project crises never even register in our consciousness. The reason: The brain suppresses information that isn't compatible with the current focus on "success." Those who are geared towards success are therefore largely blind and deaf to bad news. We can thus lie to ourselves and others for quite some time without blushing, because we don't know we're lying.<\/p>\n

How convenient for one's ego! How disastrous for project work! Even if there is deliberate cheating, the discrepancy between the embellished account and the sobering reality seems only half as bad to the fibber because their self-deception remains hidden. Since most involved are wearing rose-tinted glasses, the slight blush of shame that remains goes unnoticed.<\/p>\n

At some point, crisis projects start to stink, and as we all know, rose-tinted glasses are no longer of any use. But even here, the psyche finds a way to protect its self-image. Failures are then attributed to external circumstances. And with complex projects, there's always something to blame: the suppliers, the tools, the predecessors, and so on. The reasons given are usually plausible and often correct. However, psychologists have demonstrated that external circumstances are exaggerated in favor of self-inflicted causes. To compensate, successes are then disproportionately attributed to one's own abilities. In this way, a crucial success factor for the further course of the project and for future projects falls by the wayside: a realistic assessment of people and situations.<\/p>\n

Every project eventually comes to an end: some celebrate a belated happy ending, while others die an undignified death after prolonged suffering and are quickly buried. The projects with happy endings serve as fodder for legend. Since the actual course of events is difficult to reconstruct anyway, a plausible story is woven, primarily fostering the illusion that the protagonists usually had everything under control or at least heroically defied the madness of the project.<\/p>\n

A sentence like this would be fitting as the epilogue to many project narratives: "The characters and events are based on a true story." But nothing more. Retrospective accounts are also subject to strong perceptual biases, simply because reality is far too complex to be comprehensible. The mind therefore prefers to construct a simple, plausible success story. Bookstores are full of success formulas and solutions like "Get Rich and Happy in 7 Steps." Not because they reliably work, but because people can understand them and love the illusion of being in control. The factors of luck, chance, and all the unpredictable elements of life generally don't receive the recognition they deserve. The result: High-flying projects can potentially lead to a kind of megalomania. They become the benchmark for subsequent projects.<\/p>\n

One question: How significant do you estimate the influence of unforeseen events (staff turnover, technological uncertainties, change requests, motivation, weather, market developments, competitive pressure, etc.) on the project's progress? 30%, 50%, 70%?<\/p>\n

How meaningful is it to use individual success stories as a benchmark when achieving 30% or more is a matter of luck? At the same time, most other projects would be more like dramas or comedies. But most people don't dare to do that. Failed projects, along with all the painful but valuable lessons learned, are instead buried in some project graveyard. Psychologists call this repression.<\/p>\n

Acknowledge the role of luck and chance in success when things go well. Bury your failed projects with dignity by also acknowledging the unpleasant experiences. Be aware that you will never know the whole truth about a project. However, you can get closer to the truth by understanding the mechanisms that distort your perception.<\/p>\n

If you'd like to learn more about this topic, I'd be happy to send you further tips. Just send a message with the subject line "Rose-Colored Glasses" to\u00a0denkanstoss@microconsult.de<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Further information<\/h3>\n

Training & coaching<\/strong>
\nMicroConsult Training & Coaching on project management<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

MicroConsult training and coaching - overview<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Food for thought:<\/strong>
\nColumn by Peter Siwon about the human side of project work<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Peter Siwon: Systemic project management<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Projekte leben von dem Glauben, das gesteckte Ziel erreichen zu k\u00f6nnen. Es hei\u00dft zwar, dass der Glaube Berge versetzt, doch leider f\u00fchrt dieser Glaube auch dazu, dass der Sinn f\u00fcr die Realit\u00e4t verloren gehen kann. Dieser Realit\u00e4tsverlust tritt in der Projektarbeit in ganz vielf\u00e4ltiger Weise auf. Das Hinterh\u00e4ltige dabei ist, dass es viele Betroffene gar […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[31],"class_list":["post-7201","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-projektmanagement","tag-projektmanagement"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nProjektmanagement zwischen Naivit\u00e4t und Selbstbetrug - MicroConsult Academy GmbH<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.microconsult.de\/en\/project-management-between-naivety-and-self-deception\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Projektmanagement zwischen Naivit\u00e4t und Selbstbetrug - MicroConsult Academy GmbH\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Projekte leben von dem Glauben, das gesteckte Ziel erreichen zu k\u00f6nnen. 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