Define objectives: what are you actually delivering?

Before you can define your project scope, you first need to outline your project objectives — the assets you plan to deliver by the end. The scope helps you get there; you have to know where "there" is first.

A project objective is a deliverable. Concrete. Touchable. "We will deliver a community survey with at least 250 responses across three languages by October 15" is an objective. "We will engage the community" is not an objective; it is a feeling.

Good objectives are written so that someone who is not on the project can read them and tell whether the project finished or not. That sentence — "someone not on the project can tell" — is the test. If only the PM can tell, the objective is too soft.

For a community project, list the objectives as bullets, three to seven of them. Any more than seven and the project is actually two projects. Each bullet should have a noun (the thing you will deliver), a verb (what you will do with it), a number where possible, and a date.

A worked example: "Deliver a bilingual community feedback survey with 250+ responses by October 15. Host two community feedback sessions (in person, in each language). Publish a one-page findings memo to members by November 1. Brief the board on findings by November 7." Four bullets. Each is verifiable.