The PM Playbook | Between The Milestones Newsletter

Your Weekly Guide to Real Project Leadership

Get practical insights, people-first strategies, and lessons from the field. Everything you need to lead with confidence between the milestones and handle what the real world throws at you.

This newsletter goes beyond theory. It provides you with the tools, stories, and clarity to navigate pressure, earn trust, lead with confidence, and deliver tangible results.

Explore Now

Subscribe to the Between the Milestones Newsletter

The Trap of Being Too Helpful

Why Always Saying Yes Will Burn You Out and Break the Project Read Time: 5 minutes You jump in when no one else will.You cover gaps, clean up messes, and stay late to make things work. You think you are helping.And for a while, you are. Until one day you look around and realize: The team assumes ...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 23, 2025 continuous improvement pm soft skills team dynamics

The Power of the Reset Conversation

How to Regain Alignment Before Things Go Off the Rails Read Time: 5 minutes The project started fine.Everyone nodded during kickoff.The plan looked good on paper. But now… The sponsor is distracted.The team is confused.You are doing way too much translation. It is not broken yet.But it is not ali...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 23, 2025 continuous improvement stakeholder management team dynamics

When Priorities Compete

How to Manage Conflicting Demands Without Losing Focus Read Time: 5 minutes The client wants one thing.The sponsor wants another.The engineers have their roadmap. And you?You are caught in the middle, trying to keep the project intact while every direction pulls you somewhere else. Let’s talk abo...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 23, 2025 project delivery project leadership stakeholder management

What Happens When No One Believes in the Project

How to Lead When Motivation and Support Are Missing Read Time: 5 minutes You’re doing the work.You’re showing up to the meetings.You’re keeping the tasks moving. But something feels off. The client is disengaged.Your team is going through the motions.And no one seems to believe that this project ...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 23, 2025 human-centered leadership project recovery trust building

Why Good Status Updates Build Trust

How to Report Progress Without Sounding Defensive or Boring Read Time: 5 minutes You are running the meetings.Sending the decks.Filling in the tracker. And yet...Stakeholders still request updates that you have already provided.The team seems surprised by the decisions they approved.And leadershi...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 23, 2025 project leadership project reporting stakeholder management

When Teams Don’t Trust Each Other

How to Rebuild Collaboration When Alignment Is Broken Read Time: 5 minutes The tools are set.The goals are clear.The plan is sound. But something is off. Teams are not sharing updates.Cross-functional meetings are tense.Handoffs often feel like battles, rather than collaboration. This is not just...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 23, 2025 project leadership stakeholder management team dynamics

Leading Projects You Don’t Fully Understand

What To Do When You’re Managing Work Outside Your Expertise Read Time: 5 minutes You got assigned the project. But as you look at the scope, the acronyms, and the architecture diagrams, you realize this is not your comfort zone. Maybe it’s technical. Maybe it’s regulatory. Perhaps it’s in a space...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 23, 2025 cross-cultural leadership project leadership stakeholder management

From PM to Program Manager

How to Shift Your Mindset, Strategy, and Influence When Stepping Into a Bigger Role Read Time: 5 minutes You have mastered delivery.You can run timelines, manage teams, and bring clarity to chaos. But now, your role is shifting. You are not just delivering projects.You are managing the space betw...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 22, 2025 career growth program management team alignment

The Project Is Over. The Impact Isn’t.

Why How You Close a Project Matters More Than You Think Read Time: 5 minutes You hit the final milestone.The handoff is done.The retrospective is over. The project is complete.But your job is not. Because the next time you work with this team, client, or executive, they will remember how this one...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 22, 2025 human-centered leadership lessons learned project leadership

Being the First Project Manager

What to Do When You Are Defining the Role While Doing the Job Read Time: 5 minutes You got hired to bring structure.But no one agrees on what that structure should look like. You introduce a timeline, and people ignore it. You ask for accountability, and people say, “That’s not how we do things h...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 22, 2025 change management project leadership team dynamics

You’re Doing More Than You Signed Up For

How Project Managers Handle the Invisible Work That Threatens the Actual Work Read Time: 5 minutes You have a clear project.You have a defined scope.You have a timeline you are trying to protect. And then it starts. “Can you jump on this real quick?”“This isn’t technically your project, but…”“We ...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 22, 2025 human-centered leadership pm soft skills project leadership

Why You're Always Chasing People

The Overlooked Work of Getting Others to Do What They Have Already Agreed to Read Time: 5 minutes You assigned the task.You got the nod.You even added it to the system and included it in the standup. And still, nothing happened. So you follow up.Then you follow up again.Then you wonder if you are...

by Daniel Hemhauser — Jun 22, 2025 pm soft skills project leadership team dynamics

1 2 3 4 5

Your Weekly Guide to Real Project Leadership

Subscribe to the Between the Milestones Newsletter

Join Our Free Trial