Of all the questions you need to ask when you’re looking for a new job, perhaps the most critical is “How will I know when I’ve succeeded?” This is the same as saying, when is enough enough?
Let’s say you’re sitting down to write a report for the first time to recommend a certain course of action. You’ll have to ask yourself a few questions.
- How many alternatives should I examine?
- How long should the report be?
- What level of detail should I include?
- How will I know when I’m done?
Typically what happens in situations like this is that the work expands to fill the time available. The report is done when it’s due. This means that you work away at it slavishly just until you can’t work any more because you’ve reached the completion deadline (or slightly over it) at which point of time, it’s finished.
If you’re looking for a new job, you’ll need to figure out how the company looks at things like this.
- What feedback do you get when you finish a major project?
- How does this influence the appraisal process?
- How does it influence compensation?
- How will it influence opportunities for advancement?
Questions, questions, questions. If your prospective employer can’t answer these things then watch out.