Any advice for sticking to deadlines?

by Allen Graves

Posted: 16 years ago 23 replies

INTERNET MARKETING

I have so much friggin work to do right now. I am trying hard, but I am seeing some deadlines I set for myself come and go. Stuff just keeps coming into play that I did not plan on.

Does anyone have advice on how to meet deadlines when things that have a seemingly higher priority keep popping up?

HELP!

Thanks,
Allen Graves

#advice #deadlines #sticking

VinceNouvel 16 years ago

I Would say stay away from WF.. Lol
it does waste a lot of your time, raeding here and there.... Maybe just simple advice from me, to finish all your daily target before you can move on to the unexpected...

Set monthly, weekly and daily target + accomplishment. That works best for me...

Cheers,
Vince
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- louiefrias 16 years ago
  
  I LOVE the sound they make when they go wizzing by...
  
  :-O
  
  Seriously...use an electronic device with an alarm to remind you DAILY of each step you need to take to get the goal accomplished.
  
  With every step your goal becomes nearer...and you look like GENIUS for meeting it!
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
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  Allen Graves 16 years ago
  
  Awesome feedback. Thanks everyone.
  
  BTW, over the last three hours of NOT being online, I completed one of my September newsletters!
  
  Whew.
  
  I feel better already...
  
  AL
  
  Thanks
  
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  Italian Guru Banned 16 years ago
  
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  Ricter 16 years ago
  
  At university I figured out, for me, when the action on a "deadlined" project would begin, a simple matter of amoeba-like decision making: when the pain of the looming, stressful deadline began to exceed the pain of simply doing the work. Avoid pain, seek pleasure. : )
  
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  dustinlemos 16 years ago
  
  This little trick always works for me:
  
  Come up with some slippery-slope consequence for not meeting your deadline, and plaster it all over your workspace.
  
  For example, "Stick to your diet or you will look like this:" -->insert my face superimposed over the most grossly obese person I could find a photo of.
  
  You could try "Meet your deadline, or you will end up like this:" --->insert photo of yourself curled up inside a Dogloo.
  
  Also, take a look at https://www.stickk.com/
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
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  marcanthony 16 years ago
  
  I have a dry erase board that reads, "If you don't finish this product by___, you are a loser."
  
  This works really well for me...
  
  It may sound silly to you... try it out.
  
  Whenever I get discouraged, I look at the board and I really start feeling like a loser.
  
  Needless to say, I meet all of my deadlines now.
  
  Peace
  
  Thanks
  
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Martin Luxton 16 years ago

Not being flip

If you can't juggle balls just stick to one ball at a time.

Following this rule has saved my sanity a couple of times recently.

Martin
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- Ricter 16 years ago
  
  Why SHOULD you meet a deadline on one project, if something of higher priority, as you said, comes up?
  
  If you MUST make both deadlines, you need more resources: 1) Utilize someone else's time and labor on one or both projects, or 2) Take stimulants and put more of your own time and labor into the two, overlapping projects. : )
  
  Thanks
  
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  Allen Graves 16 years ago
  
  LOL...I definitely like the stimulants part.
  
  <running to and from the coffee maker>
  
  I think my biggest problem is not wanting to let go. I want to do everything myself. I know that's hindering my progress, it's just hard.
  
  <running to and from the coffee maker>
  
  I spend a lot of time on internet marketing forums and blogs and 2.0 sites. I guess I could make en effort to stay away from them as well...but not this one, of course.
  
  <running to and from the coffee maker>
  
  I try to set these deadlines so that I can keep things running at full speed...always going further, ya know? But then something comes up, I get sidetracked and miss the deadline. Then it makes me feel overwhelmed and a little depressed.
  
  <running to the coffee maker, making more coffee, running back>
  
  Well, thanks for the suggestions and the ideas. I think I'm gonna start with putting down all the balls but one and staying away from all these time-consuming websites...except this one, of course.
  
  <running to and from the coffee maker>
  
  Respectfully,
  Allen Graves
  
  p.s. <running to and from the coffee maker>
  
  Thanks
  
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  Ben Roy 16 years ago
  
  A couple quick suggestions:
  
  1) Break deadlines/tasks into smaller, more manageable tasks. You get the bonus of making more deadlines and crossing off more tasks, which will help your overall mental attitude, plus if you miss something there's a better chance of being able to recover.
  
  2) Try to timebox work. If you're going to work on something, set a window that you'll work without interruption. Make the time block small enough that even something really important can wait until it's over. For instance, maybe just take a 30 minute block and commit to working on an article for that 30 minutes no matter what. Or if you're going to read WF, only allow yourself 20 minutes before moving to work on something else.
  
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  mscopeland 16 years ago
  
  Allen,
  
  Here's what I do and what I think would help you out too.. It sounds like we're a lot alike...lol
  
  Are you creating a product? An ebook or videos, audio.. etc?
  
  Well do you need the Internet for any of that? UNPLUG THE INTERNET CABLE FROM YOUR COMPUTER
  
  The night before, write out a task list for the next day. I found that writing a schedule doesn't work for me but a prioritized task list works. Email should not be looked at until after 11am.. AFTER you have completed a couple of tasks.
  
  If you are working on somehitng that will take you 20 hours, like say writing a book... Task list should be.... Task #1 Write introduction #2, write first chapter, #3 chapter 2
  
  Don't make each task be about an hour... work on Task 1, then Task 2.. Then Task 3, You'll feel accomplished since you completed a task. It builds momentum and energy.
  
  Eat lunch then plug in the internet cable, check email and messages for 1 hour.
  ONE HOUR
  Then if you need to get some research done do it within ONE HOUR
  So that's ONE HOUR for emails and forum private messages, etc and ONE HOUR for research
  
  Now unplug the internet cable from your computer or turn off the wireless router. Don't just disable the port on your computer... you have to make it a physical action.
  
  Then work on task #3
  Then work on task #4
  
  This is an 8 hour day. If you need to go to the store, that's a Task, of you need to get and pick up the kids.. that's a task. Everything is a task
  
  the most important ones are first... If Tasks 3 & 4 aren't done today, put them on tomorrow's task list.
  
  Today, one of my tasks is to outsource some of my work so I can double my efforts.
  
  What about you?
  
  Thanks
  
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Earl Smith 16 years ago

I would suggest to make small and large daily, weekly, & monthly goals. Organizing your routines and deciding what need to be accomplished first should make things run alot smoother.

Best way to not overwhelm yourself is knock out one thing at a time and pretend the other task don't exist until the situation at hand is accomplished

Have a Great Week
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- Sandor Verebi 16 years ago
  
  Greetings Allen,
  
  I can suggest you only what helped me out.
  
  I've unsubscribed from 36 newsletters, forums, sites.
  
  I read and answer my emails only one times daily.
  
  I've made daily, weekly and monthly schedules and stick myself tho them.
  
  I'm on WF not always, only about half a hour daily.
  
  Hope it helps you, too.
  
  Sandor
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
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  Brad Spencer 16 years ago
  
  For all the things that need done...only let one have a ROCK HARD...HAVE TO GET IT DONE deadline.
  
  Then make that deadline for another task...so on and so forth.
  
  This isn't always easy but I started doing this after realizing that half the stuff "I needed to get done" didn't really need to be done by 5pm when 6pm would suffice as well. It reduced my stress A LOT.
  
  I mean, IM is supposed to be fun and we're in this to NOT have a job...and so many deadlines is a textbook example of a "job" trait.
  
  That's just my opinion...I don't always follow this b/c it seems at times that there are things that must be done and it doesn't work...but it works sometimes!
  
  Cheers,
  
  Brad Spencer
  
  Thanks
  
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  Joseph Then 16 years ago
  
  One really easy way to stick to your deadline and pressures you to do so:
  
  Make an annoucement in the forum of your deadline.
  
  Hold us accountable.
  
  Contact your JV partners, list, clients, friends, daddy, mommy, gf, wife, etc saying that you will do the promotion by this date.
  
  Yeah... You'll meet that deadline.
  
  Thanks
  
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  Mary Gallivan 16 years ago
  
  Hi Allen
  
  I think part of it depends on the deadlines. If they are deadlines you have promised other people for getting work done then try and honour those. If you aren't going to make it then let them know in plenty of time and re-negotiate.
  
  If the deadlines have been set by you for work you are doing for yourself then I would be inclined to ask yourself are the deadlines realistic?
  
  Unexpected things to crop up or happen and have to be taken into account when setting your deadlines.
  
  If I was you I would take another look at the deadlines set and see if you can make then realistically achievable. Be SMART!
  
  Mary
  
  Thanks
  
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Kyle Tully

16 years ago

I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by. - Douglas Adams

I love that quote

Originally Posted by Allen Graves

What are you original deadlines for?

What are the new things that are coming up?

Thanks
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Consulting Tycoon

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Allen Graves

16 years ago

Hi Kyle,

I have three websites to get up and running. I have them prioritized, 1-2-3. Once done, I can see at least a doubling of my current income.

The things that pop up are stuff like creating membership affiliate program on ClickBank and adding it to my membership software, figuring out a way to stop download thieves and setting that up, monthly newsletters, personal issues (daughter was sick, but OK now), fantasy footbal drafts

, hurricane prep, massive increase in articles to review, inbox explosions, running three forums, blog entries, marketing issues, etc...

I did get a lot done yesterday by unplugging the internet cable. That definitely helped a lot!

AL

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Kyle Tully

16 years ago

Originally Posted by Allen Graves

Getting off the Internet is a huge time-saver. It's amazing how much time you waste without even thinking about. Like right now, I'm writing a salesletter... ooops.

Any chance you can start to outsource some of those menial tasks? Stuff like setting up an affiliate program, reviewing articles, running forums... can outsource them for a few dollars an hour.

Might cost you some moolah in the short term, but if it means you double your income (as you said above) much quicker then it's a wise investment.

Other than that my key piece of advice would be stick to one thing until it's done.

If you get stuck at any point just skip it and keep going. For example, I'll often want to do more research mid-salesletter. But it's much quicker to just note down what you need and keep moving. Then do all the things you got stuck on in one go at the end of the day.

Thanks
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Allen Graves 16 years ago

I LOVE this place. LOL

Since I started taking some of your suggestions to heart, I have completed or at least gotten started, every single task I had at hand.

And another wierd thing has happened...getting started on these tasks and completing some of them has given me an even greater sense of sticking with the suggestions made above...not to mention a wonderful sense of accomplishment.

I haven't been posting here as much as I wish, but I am getting so much done that I am going to remain in the shadows for a while and will return with a vengeance ASAP. LOL

Thanks again!
AL
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- CWSusan 16 years ago
  
  SIX THINGS!
  
  This is a strategy used by some of the most successful business people in the world.
  
  At the end of every work day, make a list of ONLY six things to complete the following day. These should be your most pressing tasks and do them in priority order or if one or two take just a minute or two to complete, get then out of the way first thing.
  
  When you start your workday, review your SIX THINGS and make sure they are still the most important things to accomplish. Then be a slave to your list of SIX THINGS. Don't let anything get in their way until you have them completed. Once finished, you can then chose what you want to do with the rest of your time . . . or if you don't get all the tasks done, add the leftovers to your SIX THINGS for the next day.
  
  SIX THINGS is not an overwhelming number of tasks to complete. It keeps you focused on what's most important and you are able to feel a sense of success as you complete them.
  
  I hope this helps . . . and now that I've written about it I am once again inspired to be more diligent about this powerful time managment tool! Thanks!
  
  Thanks
  
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Any advice for sticking to deadlines?

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