As a small business consultant, I have seen time and time again how breaking a project down into its simplest, most streamlined form can make it faster and easier to achieve goals. That’s why I’m a big fan of the minimum viable process.
I’ve already spoken at length about what an MVP is, but it’s basically all about focusing on the essential elements and eliminating unnecessary complexity in your project.
By stripping away the excess, you create a lean and efficient framework that drives progress and delivers results – it’s like decluttering your project, ensuring that every step and component serves a purpose.
Here, we follow a proven project cycle, which aligns perfectly with the principles of the minimum viable process. This approach focuses on maintaining momentum and making consistent progress, while also allowing room for flexibility and adjustments along the way.
Here’s why the minimum viable process works and how integrating the Momentum Maker cycle approach can enhance your project outcomes.
1. It keeps your focus on what truly matters
When you embrace a minimum viable process in your project management, you immediately focus on the core elements that drive success for your small business by removing unnecessary tasks and features.
Simplifying your project enables faster decision-making, greater flexibility, and a more responsive approach to feedback – and all of this speeds up the project and reduces unnecessary stress.
That said, implementing the minimum viable process requires a mindset shift. It means letting go of the corporate-style notion that more is always better and embracing the idea that simplicity can lead to greater success.
By focusing on what truly matters, you increase your chances of achieving your project objectives faster and more easily.
2. It helps you allocate your limited resources efficiently
You’ll find that focusing on the essentials allows for smarter allocation of your limited resources – i.e., time, budget, and effort.
With an MVP, you can prioritise the tasks that deliver maximum impact, making it easier to identify where your efforts will truly pay off instead of spreading your resources too thinly across lots of different activities.
Working in shorter cycles means you can regularly assess your progress and make informed adjustments, ensuring that you’re always in line with your budget.
Ultimately, keeping your focus concentrated like this leads to better results and a more enjoyable experience as you see your project come together step by step.
3. It allows you to make crucial adjustments quickly
Embracing the minimum viable project framework also means you’re giving yourself the flexibility to make adjustments on the fly, which can save you significant amounts of aggro later on down the line.
By taking things one step at a time, you can see what’s effective and what’s not, without worrying about a grand master plan. This way, your investment matches actual outcomes, not just hypotheticals.
With each cycle in the Momentum Maker approach, you learn, refine your strategies, and get better results without wasting time. Then, as you work on your projects, you can easily change direction based on feedback and unexpected situations, confidently handling the challenges that often come with project management.
Being adaptable not only makes your project more successful but also helps your small business become more resilient, so you can handle future challenges with ease.
Try the minimum viable process for yourself
When you keep things simple, you avoid getting weighed down by unnecessary details or processes that only slow you down.
This means you can prioritise the most impactful tasks, allocate resources effectively, and make swift decisions when needed. And then you won’t feel overwhelmed and can focus on what’s important to achieve your goals.
Remember, each small step you take brings you closer to the finish line.
