When 2 Day Delivery Means 5 Days

This week I ordered a Christmas present that I was excited to give several friends.  My order was placed on Wednesday and I opted for 2 day delivery. It was going to be perfect to receive the order on Friday for presentation on Saturday. I got a call mid-morning on Thursday to confirm my order and was informed that because I'd placed the order after noon on Wednesday, my 2 day order would arrive on Monday.  This was 3 days later than expected and 2 days too late.  Had I been willing to wait 5 days for my delivery, I could have saved premium shipping charges. I had to cancel the order and start the gift search again.

Two days to the company meant, "if ordered on Monday, Tuesday or before noon on Wednesday". To me, two days meant "receipt 2 days after ordered". Clear communication of terminology and expectations is always required for deadlines.

No Hassle Driver License Renewal

Friends recently shared horror stories of waiting 4 hours to renew their driver licenses.  My notice arrived this past weekend alerting me that no online or mail-in option (truly no hassle) was available for this renewal.  I wasn't looking forward to spending a big chunk of time on this necessary chore. After discovering that early renewals are available, I checked to see if the Department of Public Safety offices were open on Columbus Day.  Yes!  Everything worked perfectly.  I walked into the DPS office at 3:00 p.m. and exited with my temporary license just 40 minutes later. 

Pending deadlines typically drive my actions.  Seizing the first available block of time after receiving my notice, to tackle this dreaded task, saved me time and eliminated weeks of negative anticipatory stress. 

Deadlines Drive Completion

There's nothing like a due date to motivate action.  Vague time frames for any project provide the opportunity for other time sensitive, or more exciting activities, to push the project without a deadline further and further into the future.  Structure is necessary to prioritize activities leading to completion.  It's easy to respect externally imposed deadlines.  Where many of us falter is setting our own expected deadlines for important projects that don't have outside accountability.  For anything we consider important, setting a deadline is critical.  When we know our expected completion date, it motivates us to activate a timeline. Deadlines keep days from turning into weeks, months or years without completion.