An interesting video from TED. Philip Zimbardo here talks about how our outlook on time can affect our behaviour, and our chance of success.

What I find particularly interesting is the apparently optimal position, which includes drawing a lot from the past, a moderately high amount from the future, and a moderate amount from the present. In a way, this fits in with what we do as project managers.

We need to draw on our experience from the past, and learn from it. We also need to plan where we want to get to – I’m sure you all see how planning for the future links in to project management! But importantly, we also need to be happy to live in the moment as well – to grab opportunities when they arise, to be flexible enough to recognise when we should take advantage of the changing environment around us.