Wednesday, January 11, 2006
The Deadline
You know the feeling; 24, 48, maybe 72 hours until a major project is due. Your mind is continually racing, your heart pounding. You taste the adrenaline consistently in your mouth, and sleep is but a distant memory. And there is the feeling of dread, the impending doom if you cannot meet the deadline.
These types of all-encompassing deadlines were less prevalent for me when I left college, but they still happened occasionally, a big work project, getting ready to go away on a long trip with much to do before I leave. These situations are fewer, for sure, but no less real or scary, sometimes even scarier because the implications of failing are worse.
My modus operandi is to shut myself in a room, away from all distractions, away from all other people, and plow through it, get the job done. Let’s face it, I can be tempted too easily by the distractions of the outside world. So, I go into solitary mode for a bit, and try to put out my best work.
This time has been particularly challenging. First, the stakes were particularly high: a full-paid scholarship to grad school. It would be like a dream come true, going back to school, furthering my education, all on someone else’s dime. Pretty great stuff! Add in that I had been sick for a week before hand, putting me not only behind but also secluded from the world for a week before the final push on the paper, and you can see the challenge.
The presentation is due today, and I finished it last night. I still have to run through it a few times, polish it up, and make it look its best. But the relief I feel, having finished it, is immeasurable. And I must say that, even if I don’t get the scholarship, the feeling of exaltation I felt last night and today at having finished the project may be worth the worries associated with The Deadline.
Posted by Scottage at 9:14 AM /
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