{"id":142964,"date":"2020-12-16T11:53:27","date_gmt":"2020-12-16T11:53:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/?p=142964"},"modified":"2020-12-16T20:52:42","modified_gmt":"2020-12-16T20:52:42","slug":"christmas-deadlines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/2020\/12\/16\/christmas-deadlines\/","title":{"rendered":"Christmas Deadlines"},"content":{"rendered":"

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I\u2019m writing this blog post because it is due in two days.<\/p>\n

I could have written it two weeks ago, but I didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

I usually write my blog posts on the publishing deadline day. This one is different because there are other things also due this week: cards to write, presents to buy, you know how it is…<\/p>\n

You are probably aware that our advice is to use due dates sparingly in your GTD\u00ae systems. Sparingly but sometimes.<\/p>\n

Sparingly, because if we put due dates on too many items, we go blind to the red flags and beeping reminders and end up ignoring them all until we crash into a deadline unprepared.<\/p>\n

Sometimes, though, there are true deadlines, and these need to be known and seen, to form what David calls ‘the hard landscape\u2019: Christmas is<\/em> coming, and we want to see it on the approaching horizon to ensure we are ready and that everything else is fitted into that landscape.<\/p>\n

“At any point in time, knowing what has to get done, and when, creates a terrain for manoeuvring” – David Allen<\/p>\n

New GTD-ers can be disconcerted by the idea of not just reacting to the \u2018latest and loudest\u2019, as this has been their way of working for a long time. When we suggest putting things on a list to simply do \u2018as soon as possible\u2019, there is a look of bewilderment that they might ever actually do something before it \u2018goes red\u2019 or someone shouts for it.<\/p>\n

A large contributing factor to the \u2018stress-free productivity\u2019 we experience with GTD is from making choices about Next Actions and Desired Outcomes soon after something has shown up in our worlds. If we don\u2019t procrastinate about making early decisions of what we need to do about something and what the end goal is, we can get things moving long before deadlines approach, and experience working without that feeling of running out of time.<\/p>\n

This is why it is best practice clarifying all the new \u2018stuff\u2019 that arrives on our plates within 24 to 48 hours: \u201cwhen it shows up and not when it blows up\u201d, as David says.<\/p>\n

However, deadlines do work well sometimes, and I don\u2019t think we should feel bad for using them occasionally or, indeed, even relying on them. There may be those who could add \u2018write a blog post\u2019 to their @computer list and get it done before the deadline, whereas I tend to use the calendar due date to inspire me to write mine. I see that date coming in my Weekly Review\u00ae and, so far, I\u2019ve never missed my slot.<\/p>\n

I even occasionally actively create \u2018real\u2019 deadlines to get me into motion: what better way to write a new public talk than to advertise the talk and start taking bookings with little more than a good title prepared?<\/p>\n

I highlight \u2018real\u2019 in this example because if you add \u2018false\u2019 deadlines in the hope this might motivate you into action and overcome your procrastination habits, you will most likely be disappointed. When I coach people and they have many overdue deadlines, with dates four or more weeks past, it is obvious that the deadlines or due dates they put in their systems weren\u2019t true \u2013 and that doesn\u2019t work.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can fool everyone else,\u00a0but you can’t fool your\u00a0own mind.\u201d \u2013 David Allen<\/p>\n

I do use (again sparingly) a few due dates where I know they aren\u2019t absolutely real but also clear about the benefit they will bring me if I meet them. Like a game for myself. One example is \u2018Complete tax return by end of April\u2019. The real HMRC deadline is January 31st<\/sup> – but I don\u2019t want to be worrying about fitting that in around Christmas!<\/p>\n

May I wish you a safe and wonderful festive time and a very happy New Year.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m writing this blog post because it is due in two days. I could have written it two weeks ago, but I didn\u2019t. I usually write my blog posts on the publishing deadline day. This one is different because there are other things also due this week: cards to write, presents to buy, you know […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":142965,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_eb_attr":"","gtp_columnspro_styling":"{}","gtp_paragraph_styling":"{}","gtp_heading_styling":"{}","gtp_spacer_styling":"{}","gtp_video_styling":"{}","gtp_group_styling":"{}","gtp_cover_styling":"{}","footnotes":""},"categories":[309,310,313,3423,311,323,318],"tags":[2433,340,1136,51,53,307,2151],"yst_prominent_words":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142964"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142964"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142964\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142965"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142964"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142964"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142964"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.next-action.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=142964"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}