A project is a promise. Stages make it schedulable.

Define the work before choosing the date.

A project brings together stages, a priority, an optional target and a hard deadline. A stage has its own details, status, Estimated Duration and assigned resources. External waiting can use a release date without consuming productive staff time.

Effort and elapsed time answer different questions.

Estimated Duration sizes the planned work in working minutes. Remaining is calculated from scheduled intervals relative to the planning clock; it is not a separate editable estimate. A two-hour stage may span a break or continue tomorrow.

Sequence orders eligible stages, but does not create a prerequisite. Add an explicit dependency when a review really must wait for a build.

One finish depends on all the required work.

Project completion follows the latest required stage finish. An unfinished stage with no feasible forecast leaves project completion unknown; Can You Just does not invent a date just to fill a column.

Archive projects to remove them from future planning while retaining history. Archive is not the same as marking unfinished work complete.