Stevea Robbins here. Welcome to the Get It Done Guys quick and dirty tips to work less and do more.

It was my first day on the job. My manager explained that we were in the middle of a big project,

and the deadline was approaching rapidly. That sounded ominous. Being young and naive, I asked,

what will happen if we don't meet the deadline?

She looked at me and smiled. Why do you think they call it a deadline? Wah! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

I was young and foolish. I believe that if we didn't meet the deadline, we would be imprisoned.

They would put us in a small room, six feet square, so small we couldn't even

stretch out on the floor. The cell would have featureless walls, no way to block out the ever-flickering,

harsh fluorescent light, or the incessant roar of other people's conversation. The only hint

of personality they would allow us would be a single three-by-five photograph that were

permitted to bring into this purgatory.

This was strong motivation to meet the deadline.

Then she showed me to my cubicle.

I was very confused.

We hadn't missed the deadline yet.

If this is where I am now, what happens if I missed the deadline?

Then we'll have to let you go, she said. Go? Outside,

into the sun, near the trees where there are birds chirping and laughing children playing ball?

This was my first hint that the corporate world did not make a lot of sense.

Tip number one, use short deadlines to motivate action. I was recently running a do-it day in which we used

hourly check-ins to stay on track with our daily tasks. Participant Mary Idstein had a meeting during

an action cycle. She told her team they only had half an hour instead of their usual hour. She was

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