Crunch Time

Code Comments, Journal

Crunch Time

I’ve been flat out at work this past week, being handed six weeks worth of assets for the web project I’m on in the space of three days. With two of those days falling after the deadline I’d set for the assets, it was pretty much an insurmountable task to try and get the site completed by my own target date of Friday the 21st. I worked so hard that this week was just a total blur, but in the end I couldn’t quite get it done.

My own deadline was mostly just a personal target, as there was no real need to complete the site by that date, other than the fact we’re off on holiday this week and I wanted to get it out of the way before I checked out. When I get back on the 1st of October I’m only in for a day and a half before I travel down to London for the Future of Web Apps conference, so it would have been ideal to get things finished before I was away for a fortnight.

In almost six years at my present company I’ve never delivered a project late, which is why it hurt to miss that deadline on Friday. To have the rug pulled from underneath me by things outside of my control, man I felt defeated when I left work those last two nights.

In a way this week was the kind of challenge it’s nice to have once in a while, though. I don’t do overtime. I’m not paid nearly enough to be spending my free time in the office, and I’ve been promised then shafted for a bonus when I’ve done so in the past. Hence my golden rule is I walk at 6pm regardless of what state the task is in and me coming in at weekends happens about as rarely as the average bus driver changing his shirt and taking a shower.

If you’re a potential employer who’s balking at that last sentence, then I can assure you that I’m always in on time, I’m rarely sick, and I’ll work my tail off during my scheduled hours to get the job done. I also have a sense of pride and responsibility for my work, which is why I was in the office for three hours today in order to clear up as many loose ends as I could before I’m away. What can I say, sometimes having a conscience means I can break my own rules when the need arises.

With this week off I’m glad I’ll be able to recharge my batteries before I go to the FOWA conference, which I’m really looking forward to. Like I said a few weeks ago (back in the web), I’m quite enjoying the work I’m doing just now, so I want to put the disappointment of that missed deadline behind me and get re-energized for when I’m back.

Rob