We're so close here to having several major projects finished. Yet, as everyone is so aware of, that last push to get over the finish line is so hard. It's so easy to get complacent when you're close because, well, you're close. So you start to tweak. You start to add to the scope. You think all these changes can't be bad because you're so close. However, they will kill you. The difference between success and being an also-ran is getting it done. As I've gotten older, I've learned a few things and one of them is it is better to have a really good product or service on the market than a perfect one on the shelf.
So, whatever great idea you have or project you're working on, focus on getting it done.
A very smart boss of mine once introduced me to a concept he called "the happy line." According to him, if a project was over 85% perfect, and contained no embarrassing errors, it was much better to LET IT GO and move on to the next thing than get bogged down in minutiae. HE WAS RIGHT. His constant question - "Is it over the happy line?" really changed my approach to projects, and I got a lot more good work done in a much more timely way. Good luck at finding your "happy line," Barbara!
Posted by: Debra Helwig | October 02, 2006 at 08:54 AM