Compare estimates with actual time
WhenWhen you review a week of project work.
Keep rough estimated and actual times for a few comparable tasks. At your weekly review, look at the difference and use those records when estimating the next similar task.
Why it works
Let the travelled miles teach the next map.
Start tiny
Compare one estimate with what actually happened.
What you’ll notice
Your next estimate has a real example behind it.
When it slips
If the tasks differ too much, compare only the similar part and name the difference.
Adapted from Centre for Clinical Interventions. Practical Strategies to Stop Procrastination. Read the source ↗ Buehler, R., Griffin, D., and Ross, M. (1994). Exploring the planning fallacy: Why people underestimate their task completion times. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 366–381. Read the source ↗
Mastery: Practices you develop over weeks through skill, planning and trade-offs.
