In Praise of the Last Minute

My all-time worst last minute was waiting until the due date to file a nonprofit annual form. Nonprofits don't pay corporate tax, but they do have to file forms long, complicated tax forms. I finished the forms around 9:30PM. Way too late to get postmarked that day, right? There was one other option. I drove from Santa Barbara to the post office near the Los Angeles airport, because it was open until midnight. I got the mail postmarked on the due date with about 15 minutes to spare. But the stress I caused myself awful. I was counting on no traffic and no line at the post office. I've learned to avoid the last minute unless it really is the best time to do something.
 
John Forrister said:
My all-time worst last minute was waiting until the due date to file a nonprofit annual form. Nonprofits don't pay corporate tax, but they do have to file forms long, complicated tax forms. I finished the forms around 9:30PM. Way too late to get postmarked that day, right? There was one other option. I drove from Santa Barbara to the post office near the Los Angeles airport, because it was open until midnight. I got the mail postmarked on the due date with about 15 minutes to spare. But the stress I caused myself awful. I was counting on no traffic and no line at the post office. I've learned to avoid the last minute unless it really is the best time to do something.
Click to expand...
I usually say that GTD is all about being nice to your future self!
 
René Lie said:
I usually say that GTD is all about being nice to your future self!
Click to expand...
I didn't mention that I was driving a very old used car, that would die a couple of months later, so I was counting on it to make the trip on time. I still do nonprofit filings as a volunteer, but I'm kinder to my future self, with checklists and better spreadsheets. Online editable forms and online filing are also big improvements.
 
Sometimes it can be good to put artificial deadlines on something for the same reason, I have a habit of doing this on difficult tasks for myself. I usually link it to something pleasurable as the carrot and the stick, so if I want to play golf this weekend, I have to finish that report that is not due for another week.
 
John Forrister said:
I was counting on no traffic and no line at the post office.
Click to expand...
Even close to midnight... I feel like making a bet like that in Los Angeles was pretty... brave. Remind me never to play poker with you. I don't think my nerves are as steely and you might bluff my socks off.
 
John Forrister said:
My all-time worst last minute was waiting until the due date to file a nonprofit annual form. Nonprofits don't pay corporate tax, but they do have to file forms long, complicated tax forms. I finished the forms around 9:30PM. Way too late to get postmarked that day, right? There was one other option. I drove from Santa Barbara to the post office near the Los Angeles airport, because it was open until midnight. I got the mail postmarked on the due date with about 15 minutes to spare. But the stress I caused myself awful. I was counting on no traffic and no line at the post office. I've learned to avoid the last minute unless it really is the best time to do something.
Click to expand...

This post and @grahamen’s reply got me thinking about artificial deadlines. I know David Allen cautions against the use of artificial deadlines, but sometimes I could use help pacing myself.

I found an interesting thread here:

In that thread @RS356 says: I see a difference between establishing timeframes for goals, milestones, and projects and David’s advice against arbitrary deadlines.

I tend to agree with what @RS356 said. I am interested to know what you think. What do you suggest as good practice for avoiding the last minute rush?
 
Last edited:
Sarahsuccess said:
What do you suggest as good practice for avoiding the last minute rush?
Click to expand...
I try to make sure the next action(s) on a project are small enough that it's easy to step back into the project. If the project is at all scary, I also pair the action with some kind of reward, like something to eat or drink, or 10 minutes of surfing YouTube.

I don't use artificial deadlines because I've found they mean there's some other problem with my system or process.
 
John Forrister said:
I didn't mention that I was driving a very old used car, that would die a couple of months later, so I was counting on it to make the trip on time. I still do nonprofit filings as a volunteer, but I'm kinder to my future self, with checklists and better spreadsheets. Online editable forms and online filing are also big improvements.
Click to expand...
Agree . . . 'guilty as charged' . . . plus being unnecessarily vulnerable to uncontrollable/unknown glitch(es) 'along the way' that can readily sabotage the en-devour . . . ugh!
 
gtdstudente said:
Agree . . . 'guilty as charged' . . . plus being unnecessarily vulnerable to uncontrollable/unknown glitch(es) 'along the way' that can readily sabotage the en-devour . . . ugh!
Click to expand...
It helped me when I read that waiting until the last minute can be a sign of optimism -- counting on everything going well. But I have learned to have my optimistic side also ask for advice from my realistic side.
 
bcmyers2112 said:
Even close to midnight... I feel like making a bet like that in Los Angeles was pretty... brave. Remind me never to play poker with you. I don't think my nerves are as steely and you might bluff my socks off.
Click to expand...
In this case I would spell brave S-T-U-P-I-D. I've driven on LA freeways at midnight to 3am and been stopped for long stretches when things should be flowing. I got lucky.

As for socks, you were on today's webinar, so you know my socks are all over the place.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top