Deadlines

Funny thing about deadlines. They are good discipline. They keep us ‘on task’ and help us track accomplishments. Now that I’m mostly working for myself – creating manuscripts, writing essays, posting blogs – I have found it necessary to create my own deadlines. No one told me, for example, that I needed to create a new post every three days. It is not required by any cyberspace deity. But if I didn’t set that schedule for myself, a week or more would wander by and nothing new would be added. Whatever interest there may have been would fade and I would lose my connection with my unseen audience.

Some of the things I do have their own deadlines. I write an occasional service for my local congregation and supply information on all our services to our newsletter.

If you’re doing a service on Sept. 5, it is absolutely necessary to have all the components prepared by Sept. 1 (or 2nd). And come Labor Day Sunday morning, you had better be prepared to ‘go on.’ [I will be.]

The newsletter item for which I’m responsible is created after those leading or coordinating each service relay descriptions to me. I then compile these descriptions into one coherent document with parallel structures for each service. It’s not rocket science. Not even close.

This month, the editor gave us five extra days. Instead of the 15th, we had until the 20th to send our news to her. Funny thing about extra time. When it is given, we take it. And, sometimes just let the later deadline pass us by, unnoticed.

If you have gathered that I did not receive the needed components for one little newsletter item, you have gathered correctly. It’s not a big deal. The congregation and I will survive. But it’s interesting to notice what happens when more time is given. All of a sudden, it isn’t enough.