There are many different types of people who become project managers. Some may have worked their way through the business area, while others might have known from an early stage that this is what they really wanted to do.

The best ones tend to all have a few personality traits in common, though. If you are planning on becoming a successful project leader then these are the things that will help you to do it to a high standard.

A Team Player

It is easy to think of a project manager as being someone who works alone most of the time. Yet, the truth is that they tend to be part of a team that needs to work closely together. Someone who works alone on this task is almost certain to fail.

For example, it is likely that they lead a group of business analysts, work closely with other project managers in the company and also with the stakeholders. They need to build up strong relationships with all of these people and find the best possible way of working together.

A good team player will ensure that everyone gets to play their part in the projects and feel as though they have contributed to the eventual success.

Always Willing to Learn

Project management is a role that presents new challenges time after time. Even a highly experienced manager will often come across new situations that require them to learn different skills.

A solid starting point for any project role is with PRINCE2 Courses Dublin , as this gives a useful overview of how to run a project from start to finish. After that, it is a question of adapting to the circumstances and choosing the right training at the most appropriate moments.

Some projects may simply require the manager’s existing skills. Yet, it is more likely that every new piece of work brings with it the need to learn something new.

Able to Handle Stress

There is no point denying that running projects can be extremely stressful. The fact that project leaders have a lot of weight on their shoulders means that it is easy for them to feel the strain when things aren’t going well.

Different managers find their own ways of dealing with this stress. Some forget about work easily at the end of each day thanks to a hobby, while others may turn to humour when things get tough in the office. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to dealing with stress at work.

The important point here is that everyone in this role needs to be able to handle stress in one way of another.

Enthusiastic and Positive

Not every project is going to run completely smoothly from start to finish. Indeed, it is common for these pieces of work to run into troubled phases in which it is easy for everyone involved to start to feel a bit negative about the whole thing.

This is when it is important for an enthusiastic and positive project manager to get them all feeling better again. This can be done in a number of ways, such as by running interactive team meetings, injecting some fun into the day or by getting everyone out of the office for a while.

On the other hand, if the project leader is seen to be negative and down-hearted then this is going to have a huge knock-on effect on everyone else.

If you have the right personality to start with then running projects will be a lot easier. However, even if this doesn’t come naturally to you, it is something that you can work on and improve over time.