How To Schedule Projects

Sunday I talked about utilizing a planner. And for any project that contains more than a step or two, I’ve learned it’s vital to break the big picture down into segments that can be estimated in terms of time, energy, and resources. Without doing that, I suppose it’ll get done eventually. But will it be done on time? And will it be a good product?

In industries such as magazine and book publishing, production schedules are fairly standard practice. These usually are handled by a managing editor or production manager, and they can be fairly elaborate. However, even on my own as a freelancer, I find that most projects, large or small, can be broken down in the same way to help me stay on track.

Regardless of the format in which I’m working or the end result I’m seeking, I find that my best work tends to happen when put within the framework of a schedule. And call me a geek, but I love the process of making one. It’s kind of like putting together an outline for a paper or a book. Here’s how I approach the task.

Identifying Steps or Tasks

The first thing I do when I get a project is assess what will it take to get the job done and determine what steps I’ll need to follow. I start by making a list, and I go back and think through how much time it will take me to complete each phase to the best of my ability. For example, a writing assignment might require me to:

Building a Timeline

Once I’ve identified the parts of the process and have assigned timeframes for each task, I look at how much time I have to complete the project. Starting from the deadline—and ideally a day or two ahead of time—I work backwards on my calendar, plotting out the time increments.

By the time I get to the top, at the first task, I hope I am somewhere in the vicinity of today! If not, I start over at the bottom, skinnying up windows of time where I can until I come up with a schedule that allows me to complete the work in the time I have for the project.

When I worked in custom publishing, I spent a lot of time condensing schedules to balance the needs of the editorial staff with the need to get the magazines in the clients’ hands when they wanted them. I always thought of it as the dream schedule versus the real schedule.

Creating a Schedule

Finally—and this is my favorite part—I map out the steps physically on a calendar. Depending on the project’s scope, this can take the form of lines on a single day, to-dos on a weekly planner, or even bars on a monthly grid.

This last part is key, especially when I am juggling a number of projects at once. If something goes wrong with an aspect of a project, I can recast everything slightly right away and avoid a total domino effect.

Most importantly, when a client calls and asks me to take on a new project, I have a reference ready at hand, allowing me to answer quickly and confidently whether I am able to do it and how soon.

What do you do to schedule your projects? Have you tried a different method of scheduling? I could talk about schedules all day . . . try me!

Photo credit: miltedflower (Flickr)