IT Project Management, 2nd Edition

8.2. Focus on the Work

One message all project managers should convey to the project team members, but often don't, is to simply focus on their work, their tasks, and their responsibilities. If team members would ignore the superfluous activities of the project and hone in on what their responsibilities are, the project would scream along with few interruptions. Of course, this depends on the level of detail you have completed in the planning phase.

This is not to say that team members shouldn't be involved in project planning—they should! However, once the plan has been created, the team should just get to work, ignore the gossip and the details that don't involve them, and focus on their duties to complete their tasks. The planning phase is ...