Overcoming the planning fallacy with predictable legal billing

Only 30% of people can accurately predict how long a task will take them.

Pretty wild, right?
Especially for all of us consultants, lawyers, and anyone trying to promise predictable billing?!

It's called the "planning fallacy," and it's why we constantly feel like we're running out of time or why our to-do lists are overflowing.

If you're nodding along, here are some tips to keep from derailing your day:

-Add 30% to your time estimate. Think the task will take an hour? Make it 90 minutes. Future you will thank you.

-Ask someone else. Apparently, we're better at estimating how long other people's tasks will take. So, grab a co-worker and ask for their take; they're probably less optimistic about your superhero timeline. Don't have a co-worker? (We have a service offering for that. WINK, WINK.)

-Break it down. Big projects = overwhelming. Break them into smaller tasks, estimate the time for each, and watch how manageable it all feels.

-Check your receipts. Look at similar projects you've done before. If that pitch deck always takes two weeks, stop kidding yourself that this one will take five days. (Spoiler alert: it won't.)

-Sleep on it. Revisit your timeline tomorrow; I know, I know. My impatience dies at writing this, but a fresh set of eyes (and a rested brain) can help spot unrealistic goals.

Good time management isn't about squeezing in more.
It's about setting yourself up to deliver on time without the sweaty stress spiral.