How to Deal With Last-Minute Work Changes
Whether you’re a regular employee or a team leader, dealing with last-minute changes is inevitable. You have no choice but to face reality and move forward. It can be frustrating, but you have no time sulk. These are some ways to deal with potential changes on the last minute.
Learn to say no
If you’re asked to do something with a limited time, learn to say no. Don’t agree to anything when you think you’re incapable of finishing what needs to be done. You will be on the losing end. You’re also setting yourself up for failure. It’s even worse if you’ve done something else and you were asked to make major changes. You may negotiate the terms or ask for the division of labor with someone else. An extra pay might also be needed if you’re working on a project basis.
Don’t panic
If you have no choice but to get something done, clear your schedule and work on it. You might think it’s challenging at first, but you can do it within the deadline. The only reason it took you so long to finish the original task is because you were procrastinating. If you keep working without interruptions, you can finish everything. Of course, it doesn’t mean you will sacrifice quality. You should still focus on creating quality work at a short amount of time. Panicking won’t help. If anything, it will only derail your work. It also doesn’t help to complain if you’re expected to finish the task anyway. Just keep going and don’t look back.
Learn to explain
It’s one thing to be on the receiving end of the last-minute changes. It’s another if you’re the one asking for it from your employees. Expect complaints from them. It’s natural for anyone to get frustrated because of these changes. You have to deal with them by maintaining calmness. You know they’re already angry. You can’t act like a dictator and tell everyone to just do the job and move on. Your goal is to get things done without hurting people’s feelings. Explain why these changes were necessary and why there’s only a limited time given. You can also offer incentives since these employees did nothing wrong. They were only following orders and didn’t expect more changes to arise.
Learn from it
No one wants to deal with changes when there’s no more time left. However, if this experience came about, the only thing to do is learn from it. Ensure that you won’t have to deal with these changes by following instructions and asking questions. If you’re a team leader, be clear when giving instructions. Be there to guide your employees in the conduct of their duty. If you’re only implementing what the higher executives told you, be clear about what they want. Changes won’t be necessary if everyone is on the same page in the first place.
Again, just don’t let frustration get the best of you and do what needs to be done.
Photo Attribution:
1st and featured image from https://www.asianefficiency.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Young-businessman-running-in-a-city-street-e1498812162888.jpg
2nd image from https://www.redbull.com/mea-en/so-youve-left-a-work-project-until-the-very-last-minute-now-what
