As an experienced Project Manager, Nuno Couto, the founder of Optimal Partners, has been trusted by some of the top universities in the world, including Harvard and Boston College. He also wears many other hats, including being a Social Entrepreneur, Investor, Consultant, and “Connector of People.” A typical week may include: consulting work for a client, managing his own consulting company, and mentoring multiple startups both locally, and internationally. Recently this has included sponsoring Startup Weekend Azores, an intense 54-hour weekend focused on creating startup companies. Mr. Couto took some time to talk to us about his work as a self-described “ultra-mobile” project manager.
This is not your typical Project Manager.
You have been warned.
Q: Can you tell us about your ultra-mobile lifestyle?
A: About five years ago, I had this realization while sitting in my house that I do not need all of these material things to lead a meaningful life. I wanted to simplify my life and to make a difference to as many other people’s lives as possible. So I rented out my house, moved to a small trailer and then later to a small, but well-equipped, Roadtrek van. I get to travel more and get to connect with more people. I could not be any happier.
I can stay productive while others are fighting traffic on their commute. Unless I am with a client, I can work whenever I want and anywhere I want. It even allows me to spend many nights sleeping by the ocean and getting in some early morning fishing.
Q: But you live in Boston… Where do you park your RV and how do you deal with the winter in New England?
A: I can always find street parking. And if someone tells me that I can’t park here, I just drive to another place. I have had my fair share of parking tickets though [laughs]. I do rent someone’s driveway. That allows me to occasionally plug into electricity and water, although the RV also has its own power source and water tanks.
My Roadtrek is fairly well-equipped. I have a small microwave, a fridge, and a full bath. People have called it The Command Center. And the propane works well to keep me warm in the winter. It’s my home, my mobile office, and my car. I love it!
Q: What kind of tools do you need to be able to work and live the way you do?
A: I always carry a WIFI range extender with me. This allows me to find a free Wifi connection within a half-a-mile radius. The Ideawork antenna is perfect for picking up long distance public wifi signals when I would normally not have access.
I also carry a mobile projector. The Brookstone HDMI MP-100 is my favorite. This is one of the smallest I’ve worked with, and ideal for travel. I use a bluetooth speaker to hold productive team meetings almost anywhere. Jabra’s speakerphone is great. It has the best sound quality from my experience. I love working at a cafe but they can be noisy sometimes. Many headphones will promise to cancel out all background noise, but to me BOSE is the only one that makes good on their promise. They work for me. I still do most of my work on a laptop, but I use my iPhone 6+ for everything else. I recently moved all of my most important laptop content to my phone and the cloud, allowing me to become even more productive. Basically, I have my office in my pocket. It’s amazing.
Q: It sounds like you have quite the toolkit at your disposal. What time management secrets can you share with us?
A: I try to plan my days the night before. I write the top 2 to 3 most important things to accomplish that day on a piece of paper in order of priority and I focus on each one at a time, if possible. Another secret is that I take mini-vacations. I try to spend quiet alone time by the water so that I can focus intently on what is most important. I also try to differentiate between the important and the urgent. As Stephen Covey said, I try to focus as much as possible on the important. This includes planning, learning, and relationship building. The more I do of that, the less I have to do of the urgent fire fighting. Although I am far from being where I want to be, I also keep an Idea Journal with me at all times. I write down every idea that I have and then prioritize it later. I also have a wonderful team that helps me to keep things moving. That being said, I don’t have time management figured out. I learn something new every day. I do love Tim Ferris’ principles in The 4-Hour Work Week. In particular, I try to apply the 80/20 principle: 80% of results come from 20% of actions.
Q: What advice would you give to someone who wants to become a Project Manager?
A: I think the fastest way to become a project manager is to do what a project manager does. A great way to do this is to become a project assistant or a project coordinator. A project manager does a lot of administrative work. Sometimes I feel like an administrative assistant on steroids. When I’ve had a project assistant, I have found that I can be much more focused on the stuff that really matters like planning, relationships, and risk mitigation. The project assistant helps with updating the project plan, issues list, and status reports. As a project assistant, you get to do what a project manager would normally do, but without the responsibility. And it’s a great path to becoming a full PM.
I also recommend reading these books: Rework by Jason Fried, The New One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson, Scrum by Jeff Sutherland, and The Trusted Advisor by David Maister.
Q: Why did you choose to focus on Higher Ed IT?
A: I chose to focus on Higher Ed IT because I love the environment and I love Higher Ed’s mission. Growing up, I always wanted to go to college but I couldn’t right away. That experience shaped me and developed in me a strong desire to promote education. I am also very passionate about learning and believe getting an education and giving back is how someone can make a difference in the world.
Q: Your blog and website are full of references to giving back. Why are you so passionate about that?
A: I believe that we all have a responsibility to do good to others and to the world. I also love entrepreneurship, particularly social entrepreneurship, which is the practice of applying business principles to solve social problems. So I combine both. I encourage others to develop startups with a social mission, but I also do it for my company. So, like you said, the site and the blog do talk about social entrepreneurship and giving back quite a bit. To that end, we also partner with various organizations that promote education. We also sponsor two Meetup groups: one for Higher Ed IT professionals and one focused on mentoring students and recent grads.
Q: Thank you so much for taking the time to do this interview; I know you must be busy.
A: Thank you. I’m happy to share my story and my mission. I hope to inspire others to make a positive difference in the world by combining their passions with their work.
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