Why You Need Project Management in Your Business as a Creative Entrepreneur

Let me guess … you're running a successful creative business, you're growing and solving all your clients problems but underneath it all you have massive amounts of chaos. Of course, you're making it work because you're an entrepreneur and that's just what we do…but should it be?

It doesn't have to be that way, but I totally understand how things can get out of hand quickly. You may have heard of project management before. Perhaps you've worked at a company with a PMO or a small team of Project Managers, or maybe you've just come across it as you've looked for solutions to get your tasks in order. 

I've been a PM for 13 years, so of course, I will tell you that you need project management as a creative entrepreneur, but I have seen it benefit so many small businesses so really it goes beyond me just being a PM 😉. You know you don't have time for inefficiencies in your business. Still, without really good systems in place, it's hard to avoid. Projects are happening in your business all the time (marketing campaigns, client delivery, goals, and strategic initiatives), and adding some structure to them to ensure they go as planned is a good idea for any business owner.

Note, you'll see me refer to project and task management systems throughout the blog. What I say system I am referring to not only the software or app, but also to the people and processes that make it effective.

Today, we're going to talk about why project management is essential for your creative business, along with a few tips for how to get started. Let's dig in!

What is Project Management for Creative Entrepreneurs?

Project management is nothing more than organizing, planning, and executing projects from start to finish. As I mentioned above, many different things in your creative business could be considered projects: delivering on client work, running a marketing campaign, migrating to a new email marketing platform, re-branding, and more. Knowing how to structure those initiatives well, track progress, course correct when they get off track, and bring them to completion will be a total game changer for your business (and it doesn't have to be that complicated).

Key Elements of Project Management, Simplified

For the purposes of this blog, we're boiling project management down to 4 key elements:

• Planning and goal-setting

• Time management and scheduling

• Delegating tasks and responsibilities

• Communication and collaboration tools

Why Task and Project Management Should Matter to You

My plug for great task management systems and processes in your business is that it helps you stay organized, enables administrative task automation, increases the chance of your projects succeeding, and, the best part, project management helps you stay organized while giving you more space to focus on the creative aspects of your work.

Benefits of Project Management for Creative Entrepreneurs

Improved Time Management

As a creative entrepreneur you're probably wearing a lot of hats to run your business and you might even be serving clients on top of that. That is a lot to manage and keep track of.

Balancing multiple creative projects with deadlines

If you're balancing multiple creative projects with deadlines, having a project management system in place can ensure your projects stay on track, keep you accountable to the work due, and helps manage your time as well (i.e. ensure you don't over-allocate yourself).

Avoiding burnout and procrastination through structured timelines

This goes two ways…ensuring you're staying on track and doing the work you need to do to move your projects and business forward. But it also allows you to feel good about the work you're doing. It's easy to feel like we're not doing enough as creative entrepreneurs; there always seems to be more to do or that we should do more. Structuring all your work into clear plans can help you feel like you're doing just the right amount of things. Every task has a home on the calendar, adding comfort that everything will get done at just the right time as long as you follow the plan.

Increased Productivity and Efficiency

Fewer distractions and delays when there's a clear roadmap

This is similar to the point above. Careful planning of all your active initiatives and projects helps clear your mind of distractions and worry. If something new comes up, you can work it into an existing plan if it's related to something active or create a task for yourself to create a new plan, if needed.

Breaking down big projects into smaller, manageable tasks

You might feel like you're totally on autopilot regarding your client delivery projects, but what about when something more complex comes into the picture? Creating a project plan helps break big things that feel overwhelming into manageable tasks. 

Just last week, I helped my husband, who's a photographer (and not a planner at all), plan out his 2025 strategic initiatives. He has some big ideas he'd like to tackle, but thinking about them as a single "thing" made us wonder if it was realistic to do all of them in 2025. We broke everything into actionable short-term plans that will evolve as the year progresses, which gives him confidence that he has the resources to make it all happen. And, he has a super clear plan mapped out so he knows exactly what he has to do every single day to achieve his goals. Want help doing this for your business? Check out my strategy services for creative entrepreneurs, and let me help you create clear plans so you can crush your goals in 2025!

More Transparent Communication with Clients and Teams

Even though you're a creative entrepreneur, it's unlikely you're not working with someone else at least some of the time. Setting up a task or project management system can help on many fronts. It can help streamline communication, set clear expectations (no more wondering if you're on the same page about a deadline), and even help pass tasks between team members through automation, enhancing how work flows through your projects.

Enhanced Creativity Through Structure

This is such a huge one for me. Here's a skeleton in the closet moment — there was a time when I did not use a project management tool to its fullest potential in my own businesses. It took me a long time to realize how much energy I was wasting hopping from here to there, never feeling like I was doing enough, planning and re-planning, and spending way too much time figuring out what I should be doing today. This gets a little into the strategic planning topics I look forward to covering, but for reallllll (so embarrassing to admit that, but it's because of that experience that I understand exactly how easy it is to just keep moving forward without taking the time to get your shiz together). 

Once I got my systems in shape, I had so much more creative energy to spend thinking about all the cool ways I could serve my audiences and clients. Having a solid system in place, with a process for planning and checking in, totally frees your mind from all the logistics required to run a small business. It's a total game-changer.

Signs You Need Project Management in Your Creative Business

Overwhelmed with Multiple Projects

If you feel like you're always chasing or missing deadlines, you don't have a clear picture of your workload now or in the future, or you're just feeling totally overwhelmed by everything it takes to run a creative business project and task management systems can totally help.

Struggling with Client Expectations

Professional service delivery friends, I see you. Miscommunication around project timelines, deliverables, or revisions can happen even when projects are managed well, but it certainly helps to reduce the possibility of this if you have a clear plan in place that's communicated regularly. Bonus points if the client has access to the plan!

Lack of Consistent Income or Revenue

The need for more predictable workflows and clear timelines to maintain cash flow

Wasting Time on Administrative Tasks

Disorganization leads to hours lost on the small details instead of creative work.

How to Get Started with Project Management

Choose the Right Tools

There is no shortage of project management tools that are a good fit for creatives. Trello, Asana, Monday.com, or even Google Sheets or a visual tool like Canva can work for simple projects. If you want to learn more about what to look for in a project management tool be sure to check out my recent blog where I go deep on the topic.

Set Realistic Goals and Deadlines

Before you launch a project, you'll want to create a plan. This can be an art, but starting by brainstorming all the work that needs to happen and then putting it into the proper order (sequencing) is an excellent place to start. From there, estimate how long it will take to complete each task or group of tasks. Once you put that all together, you should have a sense of a realistic timeline.

Develop a Workflow

Establish a repeatable process for handling projects from start to finish (e.g., client onboarding, design stages, feedback, and delivery). I only implement a tool after doing some process mapping first, even if it's just a rough idea of the steps of common projects in your business. This can help clarify how best to implement the tool. Should everything be in one project or should it be split out with automations to push work through the various boards.

Stay Flexible But Structured

You might think that having a project plan means everything is set in stone, but nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, I would say that if projects never changed, you really wouldn't need project managers. Project management exists to ensure that change happens gracefully. It's all about finding balance and having clear guidelines, but it is also about understanding that change is inevitable. When change happens, don't panic. I'll cover a few simple steps to help you adjust your project to change in a future blog.

Overcoming Common Roadblocks in Creative Project Management

Resistance to Structure

I know it can feel like adding project or task management systems to your business could stifle the creative workflow. I also know creativity doesn't happen on demand or on a schedule, so it can feel hard to schedule creative work. However, there are ways to overcome that, like scheduling creative work to occur over a period of a few days instead of constraining it to a single day. More on this topic soon!

Fear of Delegating

I find this one challenging. It can be easy to think that no one does things as well as you do, but really, as long as clear expectations are set (and a project management system is a great place to do that!), you can rest assured that you'll have a good way to secure the best possible chance of success with delegating.

Staying Motivated in Long-Term Projects

For long-term projects, I like to use progressive elaboration in project planning (this is how I plan yearly strategic initiatives). Simply stated, for a project that exceeds 3 months or so, a plan is only created at a high level for the entire project. Still, a detailed plan is designed for the short-term (think 4-12 weeks), evaluated for effectiveness at the end of that period, and then the next section is planned. You can set some achievable goals (and maybe a little reward if you hit them) for yourself for that period, which will keep you motivated.

Simple Project Management Tips for Busy Creatives

• Tip 1: Start with one project at a time and keep it simple.

• Tip 2: Use templates to speed up repetitive tasks (client onboarding, contracts, invoicing).

• Tip 3: Set "office hours" for creative work to create boundaries around non-creative tasks.

• Tip 4: Automate where possible (email marketing, social media scheduling).

In embracing project management, you’re not just bringing order to chaos; you’re empowering yourself to realize your visions and dreams. By implementing structured plans and clear goals, you create a powerful foundation for creativity to flourish. Each project becomes an opportunity to innovate, grow, and transform your business into something extraordinary. Remember, every journey begins with a single step, and with project management, you can confidently navigate the path ahead. Trust in your ability to take control, break down challenges, and watch as your creativity leads you to new heights. You have the tools to turn your aspirations into reality—let this be the moment you unlock your full potential!