The document discusses the life cycle of a project, which includes 3 stages: formulation, project management, and operation. These stages usually occur linearly with no turning back. However, in project management, the 5 global processes - planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing - do not follow a linear path and require going back and adjusting frequently before moving forward, especially for planning. The diagram referenced shows 4 of the 5 processes linearly, but in reality the path is not linear.