When you want to power through and get stuff done it can be all too tempting to rush things. Working at a frenetic pace may make you feel like you’re unstoppable, but the truth is that it’s not really all that productive. To ensure you’re never rushed and faced with the likelihood of having to revise your work because you didn’t spend enough time on it why not take a few tips from the productivity experts?
What Makes You Rush Things?
Pressure and lack of time are the two most likely reasons for you to end up rushing your work. The sooner we admit to ourselves that rushing only increases the chance of a) producing substandard work, and b) having to redo it sooner rather than later, the better.
If you think of rushing as unintentionally cutting corners because you haven’t given yourself enough time then the solution is obvious. All we have to do is figure out why you’re short on time and the solution will take care of itself.
How’s Your Workflow?
We all love coming up with to-do lists because they make us feel like we’re on top of our game. They are a great way of putting everything in order, but the problems arise when we try and fit too much into too little time.
Planning your workflow is the first step to sorting this out. There will be certain tasks that have to be done, completed, and signed off by everyone concerned before you can proceed to the next step. Take care of these first and your workflow will begin to reveal itself!
Are You Budgeting Enough Time?
When you want to give every task your all it certainly doesn’t hurt to allocate time-blocks to each individual job. The problem with this is that you can easily get swept up in the good time vibe of creating your to-do list, drawing Gantt charts and so on. If you do get swept up despite your best intentions then you’re guaranteed to be rushing things further down the line.
Be realistic when it comes to figuring out how long each task is likely to take, and build in some contingency. Downtime, time for reflection, and human error will all extend the lead times. Build these often undisclosed amounts into your estimates and the end product will be all the better for it.
Can You Delegate?
If you work as part of a team then it’s worth thinking about how you can seek help and utilise the other members of your collective. Asking for help or delegating work can often be construed as a sign of weakness or failure by those of us that have the blinkers on. The problem with adopting this tunnel vision type of approach is that it is always the end product that suffers.
Take a little time to think about whether what you’re doing is in the best interests of the final product and you’ll soon figure out a sensible way to proceed.
Now all you have to do is stick to the task at hand and reap the benefits!