Far too often for too many of us, we seek to make things perfect. We will spend countless hours stressing and worrying about details that we either do not have time, energy, or skills to deal with. We know what we have can work, but we don't feel like it is enough. Some people call this perfectionism, others call it work ethic, and a few call it being lazy. It is all how you look at it.
In last week's blog post C's Get Degrees, it was outlined the mentality mindset of knowing What is required, What is desired, and What is the minimum. In this article we will be expanding more on those ideas.
What is the minimum?
In business quite often there are requirements for a job, software, contract, and other activities. These requirements outline what considerations are needed, where it should occur, how it should work, and how much it should cost. Most things in life have one of these outlines, whether you spell it out or not. The minimum is the hard floor of what is expected. Expanding on the example of a house from last week. Some of the hard minimums would be:
Four walls
A bathroom
A kitchen
A bedroom
In some cases these can all be one room, those are called studio's usually. very basic but has everything needed to be considered livable. It really is the minimum.
What is the requirement?
Expanding on the minimum I might even say that the following would be desired:
Well priced
Laundry
A guest bedroom
Separate rooms for each function
high speed internet
This is starting to look comfortable and somewhere I would want to live.
What is Desired?
Beyond the bare requirements there might be some extra things that would make a house nicer and more comfortable.
A good neighborhood
Close to work
A blue wall
Big windows
A green yard
Yes these aren't necessary but they sure do make things more comfortable and desirable.
What level should I be at?
Once you know the three levels you know what is important, non negotiable, and what is extra. When you know these it makes going through the process easier. One thing that hasn't been outlined yet is usually what timeline it needs to be done on. Time really makes a big difference. Faster costs more, longer time lines can be less expensive. This really works for almost anything. If you are doing the work then if you want it faster, it means you need to spend more time on it, if it can be done later you can pace yourself. Set milestones and use them as measuring tools.
Pace Yourself
For Scabbard Media, we have an established timeline to get things done by and a bunch of flexibility with it.
Monday - Blog post released
Tuesday - Podcast released
Wednesday - Sunday - Shorts/social media posts
Now this sounds really simple and these are the hard schedules we have. In the more expanded view of the schedule:
Saturday (at least one week before release) record podcast and social media posts
Before Monday have a blog post written
Before Tuesday have Podcast edited and uploaded.
Before Wednesday have social media posts scheduled for release. (technically this can be same day if all media is ready by post time)
The second list is more strict but also more open than the first. The first list is our requirements, and the second list is our minimums. As for the desired requirements, that really comes down to sooner is better, and more content is always appreciated.
By knowing our requirements we see how to pace ourselves. There are many times I am half way through editing and either run out of time or focus. That is where I set it aside and say "Good Enough For Today." But if I am up against the minimum requirements timeline, I might have to push a little longer to meet the requirements.
When you are on top of your timeline and have good time management you can freely choose when it is "good enough for today" or if you need to keep going. The key is to know what is needed and what you need or what you are capable of. It is when these are misaligned you become stressed, overworked, and under motivated.
Figure out what is "Good Enough For Today" for you. Be comfortable not finishing it today.
