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This morning I had to pick up the boys from ballroom practice at 11:00 am. There were a number of things I wanted to do before I got them, eat breakfast, check my email, workout, take care of some gifts, finish up the laundry, and write this post.

First, I slept in until 9:10. Yea, I was up until 1:30, but that didn't help me “start fast” on my goals. Then I kind of piddled around organizing the kids and trying to decide where to start. I am a bona fide night person and starting out slow is the norm.

Suddenly, at about 10:40, the urgency kicked in and I was running around like the proverbial headless chicken. And I accomplished more in that 20 minutes than I had the rest of the morning.

Fortunately, I have a driving urge to accomplish the things on my to-do list. Unfortunately, the urgency rarely kicks in until it's almost too late. So I spend a lot of my productive time in high-stress crisis mode.

In theory, my life would be much more enjoyable if I could create deadlines that occurred before the drop dead last second. But I also have a perfectionist, task-creep mentality. If I have 15 minutes to get ready to go somewhere, I can do it. If I have a half hour, it will take just that long. And if I have an hour, well, the time gets filled just the same. So early deadlines usually just mean that I extend them again and again by adding more “necessary” activities.

Any task or goal takes as much time as you allow it to take!

Amen.

Day 5 of the 100 Day Challenge reminds me that I need to set a specific, clearly worded deadline for each of my goals. And, for this to really work for me, they need to be written down and shared with others to keep me on track. The 100 Day Challenge provides the perfect forum to record my goals and their deadlines and get the community support from like-minded achievers.

Deadlines work because they:

• Represent commitment
• Enforce accountability
• Create a sense of urgency

Join me in the 100 Day Challenge!

Alison Moore Smith is a 61-year-old entrepreneur who graduated from BYU in 1987. She has been (very happily) married to Samuel M. Smith for 40 years. They are parents of six incredible children and grandparents to two astounding grandsons. She is the author of The 7 Success Habits of Homeschoolers.