Projects—Cut Them Down to Size

Let’s start with your “A” projects—those with the most payoff for meeting your goals or customer requirements. The first principle in getting the “A’s done is: never sacrifice time for an “A” to do a “B.” Don’t spend any time on a “C” until you’ve finished all your “B’s.” And limit the number of “A” projects you can handle effectively.

Spreading yourself too thin with too many projects will cause you major problems (like losing your sanity.) Daily planning is even more critical for long-term projects that can take many months to complete. But there are other key steps you can take to cut an overwhelming task down to size. Use your daily planner to set aside the time you need—weeks or months in advance—and monitor the process and control the action steps.

Aim Before You Fire

Take some time to think quietly about the larger project, and break it down into smaller tasks. This is called the “salami” technique: you can’t eat a five-pound- tube of salami all at once. But you can eat it easily one slice at a time. List all the smaller jobs it will take to complete the entire project—in the order you have to do them. You’ll be surprised how you can handle the smaller tasks with less stress—and with greater control. Cutting a major task into 50 or 75 smaller ones will let you can handle the huge task more easily.

Start With Easy Ones

Tackle the easiest job first. Taking the tougher ones first can be discouraging. The easier tasks will help you build in more motivation with each successful step. Be sure you set aside enough time aside each week to do the job right--the first time. After each item on the “salami-slice” list, estimate the number of hours it’ll take you to complete the task. Set aside time on specific days for the next several weeks or months to complete everything on the list. On long-term projects, try to schedule completion of the project a few days or weeks ahead of the deadline. This will give you extra “cushion” time, to allow for unplanned changes, last-minute emergencies, and everyday problems that can delay even the best-planned project.

Identify Trouble-Spots

Make a two-column list: On one side list all possible difficulties you may encounter with the project. On the other side, list the ways you can solve or get around each problem:

Talk to your boss; get advice from co-workers; check to see if other have tackled a similar problem. Create a timetable for start and stop times for each phase of the project. Determine how many people you need, when you need them, and who can do each task best.

Get Help: Use Your Resources

Early in the process, get ideas from others who can help you. They may have experience or insights that can save you time and effort. Determine the materials and equipment or resources you need to complete the job on time—and make sure they’ll be available when you need them.

Build in some controls (measurements) to check your progress at several stages in the project. Benchmarking dates at key times in the schedule will help you monitor if you’re schedule is on target. Waiting until a week or two before the deadline to admit you can’t finish on time doesn’t help your credibility or dependability.

Review your plans to see if your completion dates are reasonable. If they aren’t, try to negotiate a better deadline. If you can’t change the deadline, figure out what you’ll need to finish the job on time, and tell your boss and others—in writing, if you have to. Finally, be willing to adjust your schedule to meet the deadlines.