As I wrote last week, it’s funny how projects seem to expand to fit the time given to do them. Sometimes I struggle with the idea that I’m working on a project right before it’s due, and wonder where it puts me on the productivity scale–closer to lazy or to industrious?
Thanks once again to Lifehack for helping put it all in perspective in 8 Ways to Be Ruthless With Your Time.
I can’t help but love the third point about procrastinating!
It’s possible I’m the last holdout, but I don’t have a mobile computing device–i.e., a Blackberry or an iPhone or other web-enabled phone. (Actually, my phone is web-enabled, but I don’t use that service).
Given the ridiculously small screen size and the typing challenges, what are people doing to ease viewing and navigating of their websites on mobile devices? And how necessary do people think that is for a small service business?
With the caveat that I understand each prospective client and each situation is different…
Can anyone tell me what is the right number of times and type of contact to keep in touch with a warm prospect? Someone who has a stated need for your services, seemed to enjoy communicating with you, seemed to understand what you are offering and how it can help them, but hasn’t gotten back with anything firm. Email once a week? Call after a couple of weeks, even if your only contact had been email? Drive over to their office with bagels?
People get busy and it’s important to be the one to make the effort and be there when they need you. And marketing outside one’s comfort zone is a good thing, too. A boss once told me, about contract negotiations with my clients, that if my toes weren’t curling, I wasn’t asking for enough.
So what is the balance between working outside my comfort zone (which, let’s face it, is partly based on not wanting to seem like a pest to my prospects) and not losing a real live potential client?
Is there a word for the phenomenon of a project expanding to fill up the time allowed to do it?
One milestone of a huge project was due today, and I just finished and submitted it today.
I’ve been working on this project for many, many months, so it’s not as if I only started it the equivalent of the night before. I find it fascinating that I didn’t manage to finish it earlier, despite grand plans to do so.
This must happen to other people, too, right?
Interesting parallels. Love the Marketing Guru action figure.
The comments on this post are great–especially #4 Rafi’s “REMIX!”
Peter Bowerman, of Well-Fed Writer fame, has started a blog.
If you are a writer, thinking of going out on your own with questions, this is the guy to get to know (even if only virtually).
His book The Well-Fed Writer was the only book I found that showed me the nitty-gritty of the business, in words and a style that really spoke to me. And it’s the book that helped me decide to make the leap and go out on my own as a writer.
His monthly newsletter and now his blog offer continuing advice on how to make it work in this business. Stop by and see for yourself.