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...Your Project Has Missed Its Deadline

Lesson 7 from: What to Say When…Tips and Scripts for Tricky Situations at Work

Ilise Benun

...Your Project Has Missed Its Deadline

Lesson 7 from: What to Say When…Tips and Scripts for Tricky Situations at Work

Ilise Benun

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Lesson Info

7. ...Your Project Has Missed Its Deadline

Lesson Info

...Your Project Has Missed Its Deadline

What to say when the project you're working on has missed its unrealistic deadline, but still isn't finished. Here's the situation. Your creative team has been asked to accommodate an unrealistically tight schedule for the CEO's new initiative. As you knew it would, the project is taking longer than anticipated. The original deadline has passed, and now they are breathing down your neck to get it done, but you need more time. What to say? What you may be thinking and should definitely not say is "It's not my fault that they aren't realistic." Here's the solution. In the beginning say, "Rushing often produces subpar work, "and routinely creates costly mistakes. "I suggest we break this into two phases "or get additional resources for this section "to accommodate the aggressive timeframe. "I know we've all worked hard to serve this client, "and I don't wanna let them down." If it's too late for that, tell the truth as fast as you can. I think people can deal with facts better than B.S. H...

ere's what you could say. "This project has run into some problems, "and the original timeline was not exactly realistic. "We are doing our best to get it done "as quickly as possible." Then, approach it with curiosity. "Do you know why the CEO needs this completed "by such and such a date?" Or, approach with generosity. "Is there something I can provide as a placeholder "to satisfy the powers that be, in the meantime?" Or, try humility. "I take responsibility for my role in the delay here, "and rest assured, I'm working as fast as I can. "You will have something to work with soon." Or, you could approach it with humor, and say, "Wow, "that deadline really crept up on us, right? "They must think we're robots or something." Here's the overarching idea. This is bigger than this one situation or project. When others have unrealistic expectations, and require you to work against impossible timelines, you must emphasize what is and isn't humanly possible. Try to correct unrealistic expectations. Get them to accept your realistic timeline, and offer an interim solution that will at least provide some cover for those on the front lines. Don't lie, and give a delivery date that you know isn't possible, just because it's what they wanna hear. You do not want to cultivate a reputation of someone who doesn't deliver on time. Your professional integrity is always at stake, and you want to be known as someone who can deliver. Make sense?

Ratings and Reviews

Karlie Jessop
 

Love the format of this course - it was so great to be able to select a specific situation, and then quickly learn a couple of approaches to each one.

Aleksandra Walker
 

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