Initiating Countdown... 5... 4... 3... 2...

Ann Parker here, every-other-Thursday at LadyKillers, squeaking in minutes (I say minutes) before the stroke of midnight that heralds the new day (that is, Thursday).

I really hate cutting things so close to the edge, but I have countdowns going in several directions right now, including a (science) writing project that is (? was?) due today (er, yesterday, as you read this) February 8. I always figure that if there isn't a time attached to the project deadline (due by "10 a.m.", COB, etc.), well, that means I have until 11:59:59 to punch the "send" key.

Or, I suppose I could even rationalize that as long as I punch "send" before the person at the other end checks their email the next day, I'm still okay. The computer makes it so easy to keep working... working... working...

In any case, that's my late-night take on intiation, i.e., the action of beginning something. And I shall initiate this post by pushing the "publish now" button and calling it a day. Or a night. Or something.

So do you push a project right up to the deadline (and beyond)? Or do you like to have a bit of a cushion before that final second ticks over?

Here we go...

5

4

3

2

1

Comments

[Camille Minichino]

I can't stand the stress of being that close to a deadline, so when it's up to me I'm too early!

Not that I've never been late or even forgotten a due date, but in general I'm the one who sits outside someone's house for a half hour before the party begins.

[Staci]

I definitely like a cushion when it comes to writing. When I have a small break and then reread my work, I tend to spot a lot more awkward sentences and mistakes. Of course, just because I like to have that cushion doesn't mean I always get it!

[Dani G.]

Habit or high? I know for me, I felt dreadfully accomplished when I did this in my youth. But now it just makes me disgruntled and very tired. I finally "got" it when I was teaching a college class and had to justify giving someone a lower grade than they expected. "Just because you pulled an all-nighter, doesn't mean the end-result was that good." It's true with anything. We fool ourselves into thinking otherwise.

[Susan Shea]

Some good comments here. You touched a sore point with a lot of us. Wearing my manager's hat, it became annoying to me when my staff waited until the absolute last moment to bump something up to me for review or approval because it meant that I had to stop everything else (like the review of other last minute assignments) to sign off on theirs. It tends to lead to artificially early deadlines, which become 'crying wolf' - no one really believes them.

But...I used to cut airline gate times a wee bit short til I missed a plane from LA to NY by one minute. I prefer to arrive at parties when someone else has already broken the ice, which translates to 30 minutes - drove my darling Tim nuts. He would have been on the curb with Camille!

[Ann]

Whoa! Susan! Yes, missing a plane flight by a minute would be incentive to change!
Some of the places I worked in the past had deadlines-with-no-consequences... No one gets fired, not one gets reprimanded, time just sliiiiides by.
Dani--I wonder if the "all-nighter" behavior is common in college. I know I certainly pulled less of those once I entered the world of work (although late-night marathon sessions have crept back into my life over the past decade).
Camille and Staci... I guess I'm on the other side of the fence and can only gaze wonderingly at your ability to finish WAY before deadline...

[Mysti Berry]

I hate working up to a deadline, but have missed so many with my mystery novel, next week is do or die time.

At work, we have "just in time" disease, too many things forced through to meet deadlines. Enough to cure a person of perfectionism forever ;)

Hope it all goes well, Ann!

[Margaret Lucke]

I've done a lot of grant writing, and in that world everything is time-stamped when it's received. One second late and your request for funding is disqualified. My scariest car trip ever was riding shotgun on a 95 mph dash through rush hour traffic on I-80. We were still making copies of our proposal at 3:30 in Oakland and had to get it onto the right desk in Sacramento by 5 pm. We arrived at 4:57--three minutes to spare! And yes, we got the money!

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