How the Google Project Management Professional Certificate Helped Me Start My Own Company
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I dreamed of starting my own company. I daydream about running my professional services agency, visualizing my success, and planning my next moves. Then I realized that leaping would be extremely hard without getting organized and developing solid project management skills.
I like to think of myself as someone with endless potential and the power to achieve anything I focus on and put my energy towards. However, I recognize reality can be harsh, and my ambitions may exceed my current capabilities.
A bit about me: I take on too much and sometimes become overwhelmed. It is common to need extra time to complete tasks occasionally, and I can sometimes forget. The bottom line is that I could use some serious help organizing and prioritizing my responsibilities.
This is why I have been looking for ways to improve my skill set lately and have had some luck with online learning. When I left agency life to become a freelance consultant, I needed to become my project manager and build skills fast.
I’m so grateful to have enrolled in the Google Project Management Professional Certificate program—and The value for the money at $49.99 sure beats in-person learning or anything offered through higher education institutions. In this blog post, I’ll share how this program helped me develop the critical skills to launch my own business at my own pace. I’ll also cover how you too, can get started with the course and become your own project manager.
What is the Google Project Management Professional Certificate, and why did I choose it?
The online Google Project Management Professional Certificate program equips you with the necessary skills and tools to manage any project, from initiation to launch, effectively. I was initially drawn to this course because of Google's reputation for excellence and innovation in project management. In addition, I knew I wanted to enhance my organizational skills and bolster my confidence as a project manager—everything the course description promised.
How did I complete the program?
Andrew & his study buddy Henry.
The program consists of six courses that take about six months to complete. However, I finished it in less than a month with just a couple of weekly work hours. Each course included helpful videos, quizzes, mini-assignments, and illustrative case studies. The best part? You can learn at your own pace and schedule, a significant benefit for entrepreneurs who don't have the luxury of a typical 9-5 workday.
What were my main challenges with the program?
While I did have some pre-existing knowledge of product and project management, having worked alongside such professionals throughout my career, certain aspects of the course failed to capture my interest or attention.
The curriculum could have been more engaging with more hands-on activities and practical applications like assignments that make you think and apply what you're learning in a real-world way. This would make my learning experience more exciting and fulfilling, but overall, I enjoyed each course in the program and learned a few new lessons.
This is an introductory program and certification, and I would wholeheartedly recommend it to individuals needing more of an introduction to project management fundamentals.
What did I learn from the program, and how did it improve my skills and knowledge?
The program gave me some things to think about and helped me hone valuable skills and knowledge to apply to projects I am managing immediately.
Some of the key things I learned include:
Effectively define the scope and objectives, and identify essential project stakeholders
Creating a project plan that concisely outlines tasks, resources, budget, schedule, and risks
Executing a project on time while managing ongoing changes and unexpected issues
Monitoring and controlling a project’s progress, quality, and performance
Using various tools and applications, such as Google Workspace, Asana, Trello, Slack, etc., to monitor and control a project’s progress, quality, and performance
The program also helped me improve my soft skills, such as effective communication, collaboration, leadership, problem-solving, and risk management. These skills are essential for working with diverse teams across different industries and cultures.
My certificate of completion from Coursera, for Google Project Management
How did the program help me start my own company?
The program helped me start my own company in two ways: It gave me the confidence to pursue my passion and provided me with frameworks to stay on track as I launched my business.
First, the program gave me the confidence to pursue my passion. Then, I realized I had what it takes to start my own company and follow my dreams.
After completing the program, I felt more confident in my abilities and knowledge as a project manager.
I also earned a certificate from Google that validates my skills and expertise, which gave me an edge over other project managers in the market and boosted my self-esteem.
Secondly, the program provided me with frameworks to stay on track as I launched my business.
The program taught me various tools and methods to plan, execute, monitor, and control projects.
These frameworks helped me organize my ideas, resources, and goals for my business and helped me measure my progress, identify risks, and solve problems.
With these advantages, I could confidently embark on my new journey and start my own company, designACE. We offer fully curated, interactive experiences for teams in any stage of team development. Our approach combines design thinking and project management methodologies with empathy-based team-building activities to foster skills development and creativity - so there are no more boring meetings.
Conclusion
The Google Project Management Professional Certificate was one of the best decisions I made for my career. It taught me valuable skills and knowledge that I can use to manage projects more effectively and efficiently. It also helped me start a company that allows me to do what I love.
I recommend this program if you want to become a Google-certified project manager or start your own company. You won’t regret it!
Thank you for reading my blog post. If you have any questions or feedback, please comment below or contact me on LinkedIn.
