Have you ever noticed how no matter how much time you try and leave yourself to complete a project, you always seem to be rushing at the last second to get everything done?  Or is that just me?

I used to think that this was just a result of poor planning on my part, or another case of my inherent procrastination working against me.  But the more I talk to others, the more this seems like a fairly universal problem.  In fact it even has a name: Parkinson’s Law.

Plainly stated, Parkinson’s Law is the adage that “work expands so as to fil the time available for its completion.”  Time and again, I’ve seen this to be the case in my life.  Even if I deliberately set aside more time than I think I’ll need, I always manage to somehow fill it up.  Maybe I expand the scope of my project, or maybe I spend my time procrastinating.  But no matter what, it seems like things always get pushed to the last minute.

And if that’s the case, what motivation is there to start things early?  I found this to be especially true when it came to writing papers for school.  If a paper I wrote the night before got the same (or better!) grade than one polished and refined over the course of weeks, what reason was there to avoid putting it off?  After all, things worked out in the end anyway, right?

Maybe I just don’t have a good concept of how much time various tasks take to complete.  Or maybe I overestimate my ability to stay on task.  Or maybe both.  Maybe I’m just completely inept at planning and execution.  Or maybe everyone is just as incompetent as I am, they just hide it better.

All I know is I have what feels like quite a lot of sewing to do, and not enough time to do it.