Today’s Tip: Deadlines

Not that we should procrastinate or slack off or manufacture problems to solve. But there is something so powerful about coming up to a deadline and just being forced to galvanize a final push to get something done. For instance, it’s amazing how quickly you can clean your entire house when a friend unexpectedly says they will be over to visit in 30 minutes. Things that would have normally been already out over an entire week suddenly get accomplished in minutes.

Design Thinking shortcut for today:

Today’s Design Thinking shortcut:

As it relates to design thinking, there are two thoughts that come to mind.

One is that especially for creatives or those with perfectionism tendencies, it’s important to set a deadline and the other is to establish a “good enough” standard to keep things from ending up in a never ending refinement loop. So be sure to establish those in your design processes.

Innovation shortcut for today:

Today’s Innovation shortcut:

When you face a looming deadline or unexpected issue that calls for “all hands on deck” (referring to ships when a storm would come up suddenly requiring everyone on the ship to jump into action to prepare), let that light the fire that propels rocket type solutions. And maximize that energy to get as much innovation done as possible. It is such a powerful burst of focused creative power - so recognize what a gift it is, even in the midst of a struggle.