The Importance Of "The Stall"

Why waiting it out, when your project seems hamstrung, is sometimes all you can do.

One recent Sunday, Shelley made porchetta, the celebrated pork roast that originated in central Italy.

To make porchetta, you have to be patient. Namely because, at a particular point during the hours-long cooking process, nothing at all seems to be happening. Your internal thermometer will read the same temperature for hours. In some cases, the temperature may even drop.?

If you’re watching closely — which you will be, if you care at all about the beautiful cut of meat in the oven — it can be maddening. It’s driven many cooks to try and take measures into their own hands, typically by cranking up the heat in hopes that the roast will finally rise to the proper temperature. It’s made others, exasperated, pull it out of the oven.

But seasoned porchetta makers warn against impatience. They’ve even named the phenomenon. The hours of stagnant temperature is a period called “the stall.” And it’s essential if you want succulent porchetta.

To make sure the heat can do its job, there’s nothing to do but resist the temptation to interfere — and wait.

Projects are like this, too.?

At a particular point during every project, a project manager might notice a distinct lack of forward motion.?

Team members have their assignments but haven’t brought significant deliverables forward yet. Sponsors have received emails but haven’t replied yet. The vendor knows you need a code but hasn’t sent it along yet. It seems like there’s a slow churn, down beneath the surface, but you don’t yet have anything significant in hand, anything to show for the work everyone is doing. It feels like this project will never get done.

What are you supposed to do as the project manager?

Of course, you want to make sure things are actually happening. Meet with team members, ask about their progress, and encourage them along with a cookie delivery if you need to. Get some affirmation that the work is, indeed, going forward. Then take a fresh look at the timeline and rework it if you need to. Find out how far along you really are.?

But then, we’re sorry to say, you may just need to wait, checking in periodically to make sure the oven is, so to speak, still on.?

While you wait, use your time productively. Get caught up on documentation, clean out your files, and prepare for the moment when things will start to happen. Because they will happen, sometimes all at once.?

Get ready. That way, when the temperature rises, you’ll be ready to act.