Week eight, February 28 (2018). It is happening again: as the project starts taking shape and we begin to find the basic structure is in place, the data collection is under way, and things seem to be going according to plan, you realize that's not quite true.
Like in pretty much all projects, unforeseen issues start to pop up: the data collection starts taking too long, doubts as to the use of the tools we are adopting for the project dramatically reduce the speed of its application, which in turn compromise the results, the conclusions and everything else after that. Eventually, the whole schedule agreed with the client might have to be reviewed.
The fact is: no matter how experienced we are, all of us have the tendency to be over optimistic about resources to be used in a project. And that is particularly true with time. Even after more than 20 years of work experience, when faced with a task I have not been constantly performing, I do it again. One might expect to learn from those 20 years and possibly I have. But this leads me to the conclusion that it could have been much worse.
The important thing is not to panic, try to keep the focus and do everything possible to make up for the time spent with the unforeseen events. And when it is not only time, when the delays turn into deeper questions about the work being done, and we have doubts as to the best course of action, maybe ask for help could be a good first step. Maybe review the project with the faculty and discuss alternatives could not only bring a new perspective (maybe things aren’t all that bad!), but also could allow us to see that there may be more ways to get where you need to be.
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