Part I: Observing Well, Thinking Right
Observing Clearly, with Organization, and Increasing Focus 

Introduction 
Observing Well, Thinking Right 

It is now fashionable (1) to skip the facts and move directly to management or to "let the little people handle the details" and (2) to suggest that facts do not exist or are too much trouble—"it’s all too complicated," "nuanced," or can not be "precisely known for sure." This is nonsense and rubbish. 

  There is light and dark, hot and cold, gravity exists, and stone has had the same properties for hundreds of millions of years and water for billions. Facts are the building blocks of information, and information of knowledge. Increasing useful facts decreases uncertainty and makes correct judgments clearer and more certain.

   Facts must be true and believed by others to be true, which means they must be reproducible—others can check and measure and get the same results. This means that you must present your facts in a way oth-ers can easily check. Once presented, checked, and accepted, they are facts and further discussion can and should cease—so you can move on to other tasks. 

   But there is a subjective component of facts as well. Facts are always scarcer than we would like, so we need to fill in the blanks, which brings bias. And everyone has bias, (yes, everyone who is alive has a bias— and that means you) which makes it difficult to know what to observe, how to observe, and how precisely to observe. Bias cannot be eliminated, but it can be recognized and managed. So even though you might not see entirely clearly, at least you are looking in the right direction, and at the right objects. 

   Organization is required to convert this huge overwhelming volume of facts into usable knowledge. This organized knowledge permits communication and cooperation with others. 

   Time, and the impact of time, is ever present and persistent. It initially comes free, but has costs and impacts that affect all aspects of project planning and execution. But it is frequently given little or late attention, or completely ignored—with disastrous results and no possibility of full recovery. Managing time is critical to project success. 

   Part I is about thinking right. All possible useful fact building blocks are obtained and organized so you can communicate with others, and the path to project success can begin.