The 50/25/25 Rule
I can be quite critical of myself for how I approach my work.
I view myself as an “organized procrastinator”: I always hit my deadlines, but it seems like the page stays blank, so to speak, for far too long before everything comes together in a mad rush shortly before it’s due.
This phenomenon gets magnified when I’m working on anything that requires creativity. That could be developing a speech, writing my book, outlining a blog post, preparing a proposal for ongoing culture work with a team, or sharing ideas for a project my team is working on.
It’s stressful, and it feels irresponsible. I know how much time I have to work on these things and how much time they take . . . so why does it take me so long to start them? Why am I always working on things right up until they’re due?
Does this resonate with anyone else out there?
It’s something I’ve always wished I could change about myself—and believe me: I’ve tried.
I’ve read so many books about time management and procrastination in an effort to break this habit. One of my favorites is The Now Habit, which explores the reasons behind procrastination.
The Now Habit taught me that often, people procrastinate because of fear. We tend to hold ourselves to these really high expectations, and we’re afraid we won’t be able to do a task perfectly. That can make the task feel daunting, which can cause us to resist doing it.
It also taught me that when we put something off but end up getting it done in the nick of time, we become the heroes of our own story, which can feel exhilarating . . . and can become addicting. Because we always miraculously get the task done and we usually do it well, it feels good, and that keeps us stuck in a cycle.
The Now Habit didn’t help me kick my habit, but learning more about the root of procrastination created a deeper awareness in myself and has led to a lot of personal growth. For example, instead of expecting perfection right away, I now call the first thing I write a “crappy first draft.” I aim to get things 70% of the way there so that I can invite people in sooner, get their feedback, and make faster progress.
I now also block out executing time on my calendar, which has been huge for me. It used to be that deadlines would sneak up on me because I didn’t protect the time I had to work on projects. Blocking out time specifically to get work done helps me be more proactive and evens out my workload.
I’ve also become a fan of agreed-upon deadlines. I’ve learned that I thrive with external accountability: When I know people are counting on me to get something done, I do it.
But even with all of this growth, my page still stays “blank” for longer than I’d like, and I’m still very critical of that. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had the time blocked and had every intention of getting the work done, only to sit down and realize that I either couldn’t or didn’t make as much progress as I hoped I would. That always made me feel so discouraged, and I’d so be so hard on myself.
That is . . . until I read a book called Say It Well, which helped me see my “problem” in a whole new light.
I never expected this book to give me an ah-ha about my procrastination issue. It’s a book about speaking, and I picked it up because I’m always looking for ways to elevate my delivery as a speaker. It’s written by Terry Szuplat, who was one of Obama's speechwriters.
As I read, I came across a part where Terry talks about something he calls the 50/25/25 rule for speechwriting. He said that when you know you need to deliver a speech, you should spend 50% of your time thinking about the speech, 25% of your time actually writing it, and another 25% practicing your delivery.
When I saw that formula, I had an epiphany about my creative process. I’ve always defined getting work “done” by writing things down, but Terry’s formula includes thinking. And it’s not a small part of the process . . . it’s half of it.
I realized that what I’ve been calling procrastination my whole life is not procrastination; it’s just the time I need to spend thinking. I can’t start writing immediately after I settle on a deadline because I have to think first. I can’t put anything on paper until it’s clear in my head.
Right up until I read this book, I would tell myself that if I wasn't writing anything down, I wasn’t making progress. Now, I realize that thinking is actually the most sacred and important step in my process.
It makes so much sense: When you spend time thinking deeply about what you're working on, it makes the rest of the process so much easier. It’s not that I’m cramming all of my work in right before it’s due; it’s that I’m so clear on what I need to do that now, it’s just a matter of getting it all out. That’s why, every time I get to that point, the words just pour out of me.
I also came to another realization: This is why I don't need slide decks or note cards when I speak. People ask me all the time how I know what’s supposed to come next, and I could never explain it before. But now, I realize that it’s because I spend so much time thinking about a speech before I give it. I think through the stories I'm going to share, the takeaways I want to emphasize, and the transitions I'm going to use so much that it all flows out naturally once I get onstage. I never understood the connection between that and my process, but now, I do.
I’ve discovered that the 50/25/25 rule doesn’t only apply to speaking. I can apply it to pretty much everything I work on in my life. Not everything requires practice, of course, but spending the majority of my time in thinking mode rings true.
Once I commit to a project, I think about it every day. When I go on walks, I think and take notes. When I'm sitting on a plane before takeoff, I let my mind drift, and it often goes right to my latest projects and the different scenarios for them. Sometimes I use the executing time I have blocked on the calendar to just sit and explore different ideas.
Now, I see that all that thinking time is working time, and instead of being hard on myself for the way I approach my work, I see it as something to celebrate. No longer will I see writing things down as my biggest measure of success. In fact, now, I know that if I rush to write something down without thinking about it, I’m doing everyone a disservice because I’m skipping the most important part.
This revelation has helped me identify what actual procrastination looks like. For me, true procrastination is what happens when I'm distracting myself from thinking. If I catch myself watching a show or scrolling Instagram or doing less-important busy work when I know I should be thinking about a project, something's up.
When that happens, it’s usually because there’s a fear underneath that project that I need to work through. Maybe I’m holding myself to an unrealistic standard, or maybe I don’t feel aligned or clear and need to have a conversation with the person expecting this project from me. Sometimes it’s because I've been working too much and need a break. No matter the reason, I know how to spot the difference now.
I’m curious about you . . . have you struggled with the same thing I have? What about this post is resonating or not resonating with you? Have you ever gotten frustrated with yourself for “not working” when, in fact, you were?
Hit “reply” and tell me more! My team and I love reading your responses. It’s one of the highlights of our week!
Big hugs,
