Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada

There’s no doubt in my mind that I’m a product of both of my parents. The DNA footprint that they left on me sometimes drives me crazy, but as I get older I think I’m mellowing into acceptance instead of resistance. From my Father I get a tendency towards perfectionism from my Mother I hope I managed to acquire the ability to set a deadline and do the best job I can up until that deadline – this isn’t always easy if I feel like with just a couple of extra hours or days I could make a project better, but the ability to set a deadline and do my best to stick with it allows me to do the best job I can, then move on.

Not only do I set myself deadlines, I usually try and finish a project before the deadline as it gives me an bit of extra time to recheck things and feel confident that yes indeed this is the best I can do given the time I’ve allowed myself. I derive a certain comfort in having enough time to recheck things fairly thoroughly and give myself this time when ever possible. There are of course times when I don’t have this luxury, but it’s my preferred working style if I can swing it.

This isn’t for everyone I know…

There are those for whom the deadline is just an arbitrary date set by someone else that has little or no barring on the current task at hand… This quote always makes me crack up in fact –

“I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.”

–Douglas Adams, English humorist & science fiction novelist (1952 – 2001)

Perhaps its as a result of the DNA I was born with, perhaps it’s my own particular take on the world, but deadlines seem to suit me quite well. Sure they play well to my control freak nature, but there’s also a level of respect involved for me that comes into it as well. Being able to set a deadline and keep it means that you have a certain respect for how you manage your own time and how the way you manage your time effects other people. In business, this sort of respect seems to go a long way.

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