MISTAKE #36: Hurry Up and What?
I’m sure you’ve heard of the saying “hurry up and wait”.
It is most commonly related to an operating principle of the U.S. Army.
The basic idea is to accomplish your tasks as quickly as possible to be better prepared for unanticipated issues. To be ready ahead of time is far better than finding yourself unprepared at the last minute.
I’ve worked with some ex-military people that were great examples of this. They always seemed to be one step ahead with their work, giving them the luxury to anticipate more scenarios or to take on “nice to do” work because the “need to do” work was finished.
I love working with that disciplined personality type.
However, I’m also often involved in delivering projects that were either ignored or overlooked and now must be treated like fire drills.
I also frequently submit proposals for projects, don’t hear anything for weeks or months, and then get a request along the lines of ‘how quickly can you get this done?’
Lots of people create self-imposed crises due to poor planning.
WHY WAIT TO HURRY UP?
While I’ve built a business that is great at delivering these last-minute projects, I always feel quick-turn projects leave important things undone.
Don't misunderstand me. I won’t deliver crappy work that contradicts my core equities and threatens my reputation. But speed and time constraints always come with consequences.
I frequently walk away from delivering a project done in 1 or 2 weeks with curiosity in my mind and questions about how much more could have been learned or how much better the story could have been.
With extra time, I have the luxury of putting projects on the shelf for a few days before sending the final deliverable so the information can wander through my mind palace. I almost always return to projects with greater clarity or new angles to go back and explore connections that would not have been made.
I’d credit this practice as a key secret to my success.
And I’d also say it is one of the biggest mistakes I see made by the clients I work with.
FAILURE IN PLANNING
I’m very fortunate to work with many clients that are very intelligent and motivated people. However, I also see too many of these intelligent and motivated people deliver work that they know is far less than their best effort.
These people can’t imagine having the luxury of a hurry-up-and-wait approach because so many of them are trying to deliver the work of one-and-a-half or two full-time roles.
Does this sound like you?
Has it been a long time (if ever) since you’ve felt you had extra time to reflect on work before needing to deliver it? Do you consistently feel like the work you’re delivering isn’t your best?
Today’s challenge to you is to block out time and figure out the root cause of this. Ask yourself the following question:
What would have to change for me to be on top of my work versus always feeling my work is on top of me?
You’ll probably arrive at one or more of the following:
I’m being asked to do too much.
I've been given too little time, funding, or other resources.
I do not have the skills or tools to do the things I’m responsible for.
Certain unproductive black holes of time (meetings, unimportant tasks, etc.) steal too much capacity.
You could deliver dramatically better work and be more satisfied with your career if you could just start fresh and break the cycle of being in perpetual catch-up mode.
You just need to be given the opportunity to be caught up and not already have a backlog of projects that are already behind schedule.
HURRY UP AND FIX THE UNDERLYING ISSUE
You already realize that things rarely get better on their own. I’m not telling you something you don’t already know.
I’m simply reminding and motivating you to stop waiting. Like so many things that are good for us, once we finally take action we’ll wonder why we waited so long to hurry up and make the change.
So take time to identify and prioritize the barriers preventing you from being on top of your work. Get yourself in a position to anticipate the unexpected, not just react to it.
And if, as you assess your situation, you realize either capacity or skill sets are one of the biggest culprits, feel free to engage with us. We’ve been in the same boat and would love to help you realize greater success and satisfaction.