About that project that takes twice as long

How’s that project you’re working on going?

We’ve heard people say (or say ourselves) that things always take twice as long as we expect them to, and cost twice as much.

What are these ‘things’ and why does it happen?

1: Things we didn’t dignify with the time and investment they deserved in the first place in order to ensure their success. Important things deserve more of our protection than our best-case estimates can provide.

2: Things we didn’t dignify with the focus and attention they deserved in the first place. Doing four things at once because you think you can squeeze them all in means you’re gambling with their outcomes should anything not go exactly to plan.

3: Things we didn’t dignify with the quick death it deserved in the first place. Dawdling through bodies of work that never needed to happen in the first place trades effectiveness for productivity.

They only take longer or cost more than expected when we don’t modify our expectations to include the dignities our projects deserve.