Stay Ahead Of Your Deadlines

We all know the stress of running a losing race against deadlines we have to meet. These could include deadlines for work projects, school assignments, social events, and anything else that doesn’t have the courtesy to wait till you’re good and ready!

Since I like some control over my life, I decided a while back that I should manage my deadlines instead of letting them manage me. Here are a few things that worked.

1. Reduce the number of deadlines

Agreeing to fewer deadlines is a good place to start. It is actually quite simple once you gather the courage to say no to a few things. Decide what your top three priorities in life and in work are. Anything else is a candidate for your new no-deadline policy.

Just say “I’d love to help / participate / contribute but can’t commit to a date right now. Are you ok to leave the date open and I’ll get round to it when my schedule frees up?” You’ll be surprised how many people will let you off the hook totally, and go seek out someone else who will agree to be a slave to their deadline.

2. Mentally bring forward your deadlines

Whatever the actual deadline for a project or assignment is, mentally bring it forward by a day or even a week. Be firm with yourself about finishing the project by this earlier date. Not only does this reduce your stress level, it usually results in better quality because you were not in a hurried and flustered state of mind when you did the work.

This earlier deadline has to be as real in your mind as the actual one. If you keep telling yourself that it’s a false deadline, then your mind will recognise only the actual deadline. But if you tell yourself that this earlier deadline is very real because something may crop up during the days before the actual deadline and you won’t have time for the project as a result (which very often happens so in reality the earlier deadline is actually more realistic) then your mind will recognise the earlier deadline as the real one.

3. Submit your work ahead of time

At work, this will earn you some brownie points. If you work for yourself, you’ll earn brownie points with yourself too. Your gait is often more confident simply from the knowledge that you are in control. Also, the next time you speak to your boss or client, you can confidently agree to a deadline knowing that you are able to comfortably meet it.

4. Wait for the actual deadline

If you choose to wait for the actual deadline to hand in the work, you have the opportunity to submit work of better quality. When you have a day or more between completing your draft and handing it in, you can re-read it with some mental distance, and therefore view it more objectively and make effective revisions just before handing it in.

It’s much easier to delete entire sentences or sections a few days later than just after you’ve written it. One of Stephen King’s tips for good writing is to “kill your babies” and it is much easier to do this when you haven’t just birthed the baby.

While you’re waiting for the actual deadline to submit your work, start on your next project. This will give you a headstart on every project and all these extra headstarts will boost your productivity, confidence and enjoyment of your work.



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Posted by Daphne | November 10, 2008 | in Work Hard


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3 Responses to “Stay Ahead Of Your Deadlines”

  1. Nicolas
    November 16th, 2008 @ 11:41 am

    Hi,

    This is a very nice article on deadlines. It keep asking other people on their time management techniques and you added some aspects to my collection.

    In my Time Management Master blog I created a collection of about 200 concrete time saving tips on how to gain an extra hour every day. The tips can be applied at home, at work or on the road.

    http://memytime.wordpress.com/

    The funny thing about such tips is that since every person is different, the tips have to be too. I would be interested in knowing of you found something useful for you?

    Please keep writing you blog – it is a please to read it.

    Nicolas

    Nicolass last blog post..Reduce the number of outgoing emails

  2. Daphne
    November 16th, 2008 @ 1:20 pm

    Hi Nicholas,

    Thanks for your comment. I visited your blog and like the concise posts with practical tips on time management. I especially liked the suggestions on managing email, since that is the scourge of modern life and makes people almost slaves to their computers or Blackberries.

  3. 28 Ways to Slay the Delay | Marc and Angel Hack Life
    April 3rd, 2009 @ 3:04 pm

    [...] Set your clocks and deadlines ahead. – “Whatever the actual deadline for a project or assignment is, mentally bring it forward by a day or even a week.  Be firm with yourself about finishing the project by this earlier date.  Not only does this reduce your stress level, it usually results in better quality because you were not in a hurried and flustered state of mind when you did the work.  This earlier deadline has to be as real in your mind as the actual one.”  It can be if you make a habit of finishing things early. – via Joyful Days [...]

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