May 18, 2011 at 21:54Heroic Dates
Our whole life consists of various kinds of tasks and deadlines for their implementation. Ideally, the presence of a specified deadline directly affects whether the task will be completed or not, although, of course, one also has to deal with deviations from the norm, which are expressed in the failure of these very terms. In this situation, a rather interesting phenomenon arises: the deadline set for us by someone , as a rule, has a much stronger influence on the fulfillment of the task than the deadline set by us for ourselves. Although, it would seem, we know ourselves better than others, we get along very well, we are more interested in personal success than in anything else, but at the same time, we, over and over, carelessly manage to disrupt the personally set deadlines. The consequence of this was the emergence of “heroic deadlines,” as I call them.
“Heroic term” is a period set by us for ourselves, for which we must manage to complete a much larger amount of work in a short period of time.
“I will read the whole book in a night!”, “I will have time to make up all the internal pages in 2 hours!”, “I will finish the course today!” - I think that phrases are painfully familiar to everyone. Usually, such heroic exclamations arise when:
a) inspiration descends on us;
b) we are on the verge of failure to meet deadlines (and it does not matter who they are defined).
In most cases, this venture is a failure, albeit not fatal. As a result, we finish the work in a much longer time, after which we proceed to the next task and again do not cope well with the deadline set for it. That is why I highly recommend not setting yourself “heroic deadlines.” I will explain why.
At the first stage, upon receipt of the task and setting the deadline, we are not particularly concerned about its implementation, because we have a lot of time ahead. At the second stage, activities are carried out aimed at fulfilling this task, albeit with varying success, because the desired pace was not from the very beginning. In the third stage, when there is very little time left, we easily set a “heroic term” for ourselves. As a result, we have:
a) a task not completed on time;
b) double deadlines (normal and “heroic”);
c) loss of strength, energy and self-confidence (more often on a subconscious level);
It is the last point that is the reason that we cannot set the necessary pace of work on a new task from the very beginning, because we need time to recover. Thus, the presence of “heroic deadlines” puts us in a vicious circle of ineffective solutions to the tasks before us.
Get rid of the habit of setting "heroic deadlines." Be honest with yourself and do not try to jump above your head. It is better to fully recognize your strengths, evenly distribute tasks and, avoiding stress, solve them. Over time, you will gain a pace of work that is comfortable for you and will become excellent, and most importantly, on time, to cope with your tasks.
“Heroic term” is a period set by us for ourselves, for which we must manage to complete a much larger amount of work in a short period of time.
“I will read the whole book in a night!”, “I will have time to make up all the internal pages in 2 hours!”, “I will finish the course today!” - I think that phrases are painfully familiar to everyone. Usually, such heroic exclamations arise when:
a) inspiration descends on us;
b) we are on the verge of failure to meet deadlines (and it does not matter who they are defined).
In most cases, this venture is a failure, albeit not fatal. As a result, we finish the work in a much longer time, after which we proceed to the next task and again do not cope well with the deadline set for it. That is why I highly recommend not setting yourself “heroic deadlines.” I will explain why.
At the first stage, upon receipt of the task and setting the deadline, we are not particularly concerned about its implementation, because we have a lot of time ahead. At the second stage, activities are carried out aimed at fulfilling this task, albeit with varying success, because the desired pace was not from the very beginning. In the third stage, when there is very little time left, we easily set a “heroic term” for ourselves. As a result, we have:
a) a task not completed on time;
b) double deadlines (normal and “heroic”);
c) loss of strength, energy and self-confidence (more often on a subconscious level);
It is the last point that is the reason that we cannot set the necessary pace of work on a new task from the very beginning, because we need time to recover. Thus, the presence of “heroic deadlines” puts us in a vicious circle of ineffective solutions to the tasks before us.
Get rid of the habit of setting "heroic deadlines." Be honest with yourself and do not try to jump above your head. It is better to fully recognize your strengths, evenly distribute tasks and, avoiding stress, solve them. Over time, you will gain a pace of work that is comfortable for you and will become excellent, and most importantly, on time, to cope with your tasks.