Why Projects Should Have an End Date
- Jonda Beattie
- Mar 13
- 2 min read
When I ask potential clients, “What do you want to accomplish by working with a professional organizer?”, I often hear replies like, “I want my house decluttered.” Or “I want to be comfortable having people over.”
They have a vision of sorts and motivation but the project at this point is open-ended.
When a client shares that they need to have their house on the market by September or that they want to have a less stressful space to study when they begin graduate school in January, I know that we are much more likely to get this project accomplished.
When there is a vision, and motivation, and an end date it is much easier to put a solid plan in place.
I like to start with the end result and work backward to make sure we can accomplish the project.
Let me give a personal example of what this looks like.
I am having a family reunion at my house on the first weekend in June.
I began working on my vision of what this would look like in January.
I called my siblings and stated my intention. First, we settled on a date that would work for everyone. That is my end date for this project.
I got great feedback on what we might do to make this reunion memorable. One sister wants to make sure that we share pictures and remembrances about our family history. Another suggested some outdoor games that could be played by all ages.
I brainstormed all that I felt I needed to do. I made a list and then put “do” dates by everything on the list. I knew what I wanted accomplished by the end of January, February, March, etc. I made several spreadsheets.
As of now, I am right on schedule and feeling excited about the project.
Another advantage of working out your project with a timeline is that you can adjust your expectations so that they are realistic and more likely to be accomplished. Your “perfect” vision may become a “certainly good enough” vision. Enough will get done so that you can meet your goal.
If you need some help jumpstarting a project or some guidance with organizing your time or space, reach out and we can schedule a consultation.
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Jonda S. Beattie, Professional Organizer owner of Time Space Organization, and co-owner of Release, Repurpose, Reorganize. She is based in the Metro-Atlanta area. As presenter, award-winning author, as well as a retired special education teacher she uses her listening skills, problem solving skills, knowledge of different learning techniques, ADHD specialty, and paper management skills to help clients.
I work differently when I have an "end date" or when a deliverable is due, versus when it's an open-ended project. However, not all projects or goals have a specific due date.
Generally, though, when there is a due date, there tends to be more urgency with getting things done.
With my clients, some have specific deadlines, but more often, the work is ongoing with no deadline. They are working towards a result and doing so in a timeframe that isn't overwhelming. For example, they might want to downsize because they'd like to move someday. But they don't have their house on the market or know where they are moving to.
I know that if I don't have a due date (or better yet, a series of them), I'm far less likely to accomplish a task. When I was writing my book, my publisher had set interim deadlines, and it reminded me of when I was in middle school, and instead of just writing a report, we'd have deadlines for sharing our topics, writing up our bibliographies, creating an outline, writing a first draft, showing an edited draft, and turning in the final report. There's something comforting about considering the deadline, and then having those benchmarks. You're so right that without a deadline, a vision is only aspirational; add that due date, and it becomes motivational! I'm sure your family reunion…
Wow, I couldn't agree more. I am constantly working my way backwards from whatever the end date or end time is. How fun to be planning the big family reunion. I honestly don't know to plan something like this without starting at the end and then figuring out what and when should happen in preparation. Having an end date also keeps us from letting projects drag on endlessly. If there isn't a natural end date, we should set one ourselves, right?
I totally agree, Jonda! Deadlines are so important. My solopreneur clients tend to underestimate how long the project will take. After discussing the details and the level of complexity, we set a firm end date. Since this deadline is usually for one person, it doesn't necessarily need to be very hard. So, sometimes, we give ourselves grace and say, well let's add a few days or a week. We do not need to be so harsh to ourselves when deadlines come and pass. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. =)
Someone once told me that Someday is not on the calendar. I have to agree! Deadlines are very important for motivation.