If you drive or ridden in the passenger seat of a vehicle and looked at the side mirror, you may have noticed the little sticker that says “OBJECTS IN THE MIRROR ARE CLOSER THAN THEY APPEAR.” When changing lanes, we check them (most of the time anyway). Sometimes, even though the car we see looks like it’s far enough back, we’re met with a honk and a one-finger-wave when we attempt to move over. Guess they were closer than they appeared!
The same can be true for the calendar. Don’t believe me? On yours, your spouse’s, or maybe your kid’s birthday, did you say “Wow, that year went fast!” Same goes for your wedding anniversary or other significant event. Time only seems to move slow when we’re looking forward to a vacation, but once we’re on vacation it goes fast.
Dates are like objects in side mirrors; they’re closer than they appear!
I was reminded of that this weekend as I was assisting a non-profit with their 2020 planning. There are two big initiatives they want to accomplish in 2020. The first is targeted to be done by July and the other by October. Seven months is a long time!
No problem, right!?
Wrong.
As we started putting together an action plan, it was quickly discovered there is a lot more to do than originally thought. Also, because success is dependent on volunteers, any float time we thought we had was gone! That July date suddenly looked a lot closer than it did an hour ago!
In a project, have you ever planned for a milestone 6 months in advance and thought “No Problem!”, only to miss it? That date snuck up on ya!
When you plan your projects, you’ll have a varying number of milestones to achieve depending on the project complexity. Even though milestones six months or more out seem like a long ways away, they’re not. Before you know it, the date is here. Yes, you do have to focus on the here-and-now, but don’t lose sight of tasks in the future. They’ll be here before you know it!
Bridge the Gap Consulting, LLC 