If all else fails, try to research it yourself. ), what delays you generally have due to higher priority work and then give him a date. Or to the whole estimate? their associated calculated values. How can the mass of an unstable composite particle become complex? The preferred words are ETA, duration, and time frame. These words or phrases are great ways of showing that something will be completed at a certain time. . How to answer what is your estimated time to complete this coding task? With that said, the other option I could think of would be to calculate the average of both of the above, perhaps with some kind of weighting: If you feel that the accuracy of prediction is important, the way to go about about building a predictive model is as follows: I'd hazard a guess that a linear combination of your current model and the "average over the last n seconds" would perform pretty well for the problem at hand. Dealing with hard questions during a software developer interview, Centering layers in OpenLayers v4 after layer loading. Try to talk to your neighbor, first. How much does Joe work? Three-point estimating. Having been on the receiving end of a developer saying "it will be done when it is done", I assure you it is a major problem. I was pulled onto another project.. They just mean that you havent seen each other in a while. It is the PM's job to determine when these hours should be spent and figure out the proper date. "Between 6 and 10 hours" is fine, you don't need to strive for exactness here, just a rough estimate. I think the people managing the work have to add NO to the vocabulary. It only takes a minute to sign up. Provide interval instead of single time ('1h45-2h30 mins'), or just limit the precision ('about 2 hours'). Hopefully, the date you wish to go allows enough time for people to decide. A bit late but when I was in the military we were instructed to use PERT to determine estimates. The requirements are unclear. Instead of showing a single ETC, show a range of time. when in a new job position. What is the easiest way to get current GMT time in Unix timestamp format? ETC is another good acronym for this situation. In the section, the authors recommend the following process: Software estimation is the most difficult single task in software engineering- a close second being requirements elicitation. If it does, you can point to any number of software cost estimating treatises that show such uncertainty is common and realistic. Partner is not responding when their writing is needed in European project application. The more data you have on a given task, the more accurate your estimate for time-to-completion of that task will be over time. Better: go speak to him personally to try to find out this information, using the same polite verbiage, above. It's okay you think, you'll work over 100+ hours a week, unpaid overtime. There are occasions in life both business and social when you need a deadline. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. This is quite a hefty completion time! I dont think thats going to work at all! 542), How Intuit democratizes AI development across teams through reusability, We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup. can make people more receptive to your ideas. Not recommended. all the implications. Manage Settings Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience. Only when you start coding you can find the exact issues. Have you gathered enough information to find out the exact time frame? I like "there is no estimate for that yet.". Ie, each developer enters how long they think each task will take, and later, how long that task took, and it guages how accurate each developer is with their estimates to produce a probability curve for a finish date. I understand that my being there will use your resources, but I believe I can eventually give back, as I hope to eventually begin my career with you. That is what we term to be good manners.. code and you start thinking immediately of all the things you might We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. If not, or in case of doubt, involve your boss. . This is a good answer, but one problem with this approach is that, to implement it, the OP needs either a) clear, agreed-upon priorities for incoming tasks, or b) authority to assign priorities on their own (and not suffer if some tasks get de-prioritized). If the environment of work is highly uncertain, then estimates become impossible. I'm afraid, however, that the problem is that most organizations want estimates of much bigger tasks than the ones that can be expressed in .1 hour chunks. Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. It sucks, and it's wrong, but it's unfortunately reality. Weight the second method more if the copy speed is unpredictable, and is likely to do things like speed up/slow down for long periods, or stop altogether for long periods. The links look useful as well. Whatever you do never give absolute dates - only hours. Passing the buck (i.e. total completion time. If the boss says" how much time do you need to write a cash register program, say "30 hours assuming target is standard Windows environment with standard Java libraries"" Thankfully I knew I didn't have a proper grasp on the time requirement going in. I want to find out the ETC. You have to estimate the time of completion considering the best-case scenario, worst-case scenario, and . Having said that, "When will you be done?" And then instead of answering with "2 Months", you can answer with "sounds like an L to me" (or whatever your calibration for project turns out to be). Browse other questions tagged, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. Make assumptions to fill in the gaps based on your best guess of what they want. Firstly, I am aware that this is not at all a simple problem, and that predicting the future is difficult to do well. Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers. That's bad advice, and a poor approach to these things. Calculate the estimate based on your model. Any idea how do you estimate such timing on the spot? I did development for a guy who was very adamant about wanting accurate estimates. Assign values and error ranges (+/-) to each value. "I'm not sure, when are you going to get me X?" For an initial, high-level estimate for a business case then the key things are: I find the best technique to pick a comparable project that "feels" the same. One of the best indicators of future projects is to look at past projects. Or, if they are in a shared office space, go and talk to them. If the business case was solid they wouldn't need your estimates. Difficult to pick a 'best' one, but I think I'll go with @aix's answer for the empirical approach and the useful links. That's right, you. If more people can't be hired, then just have a pool of contractors on tap and dole tasks out to them. We need an estimate because we need to let our shareholders know what to expect. More interesting ideas here that I wouldn't have thought of. The requirements are unclear. Yes you can. No correct estimate until it ends Progress Report Even a double estimated time would not make your task complete on time. A simple way to get that is to have a factor that is a percentage of the completion, that you use to tweak the estimated remaining time. is a more plainly aggressive response where someone is meddling in your business but not taking care of theirs. Whatever method you use it needs to be quick. There is a blog entry that outlines how to keep a record of how accurate your previous estimations have gone, and then next time you say to someone "it'll be two weeks", you can look at your previous history and see how long it actually took last time you said "it'll be two weeks". Whats the ETC were looking at here? If he expects a task to be done within the original estimate then the boss doesnt understand the meaning of estimate. What techniques have you found useful? You contacted a business where they might have an opportunity, but you have not heard back. Seriously. Based on comments on other answers, it appears that your problem is not time estimating but communicating delays based on changing priorities. Thats about all we can cope with. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. In 1 hour of detailed estimating, I'd determine it'd take 8.5 hours. Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience. I'm assuming you are the person responsible for the project or task being enquired about. It has worked out fine for stack overflow. Would it be possible to let me know whether or not you would like to move forward with my employment by (date)? And then ask yourself: which project does that sound similar to in scope? Is it added to each line item? It'll be 8 weeks before this receives an automatic priority upgrade, and then it'll take a week or two in that queue until it's finished.". Guess who gets perceived as the jackass? @DJClayworth does it help you in any way if you get told an arbitrary date, you make plans based on that date, and on that date find out the reality of "it will be done when it's done"? Katie is a passionate digital nomad working on her first book on the art of communication. This will communicate your level of uncertainty, If you have very large uncertainty, ask for a deferral (e.g. people may be trying to plan things based on when the work will be completed. In fact, when you are making an estimate for your own company the estimate time is being paid as part of your salary also. The principal advantage of using the Kalman filter rather than a fixed n-second sliding window is that it's adaptive: it will automatically use a longer averaging window when measurements jump around a lot than when they're stable. Perhaps 'about 2 hours, currently stalled' I haven't tried it myself, but I'd like to, to see how accurate my estimations are. I dont mind an estimate, but I dont like the three-hour disparity between your numbers. Its exasperating! Small tasks or complete solutions. Many thanks! Contact Michael to find out what time hes going to be able to upload this. Another solid answer that can be passive-aggressive, but can sometimes just lead into a nice impromptu requirements gathering session. 542), How Intuit democratizes AI development across teams through reusability, We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup. When you are asked to estimate due dates, is there a especially polite or clever way of say it is "Done when it is done" ? Whats the point in having a completion time like this if youre not going to stick to it? It's part of your job. Do you think thats going to be enough time to get everything together? Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. Being on good terms with your neighbors is important, but sometimes it can be difficult. Check with me in a few days and I'll have a better estimate.". Because I have been on the job hunt, I believe I will soon have an offer. Is there a way to only permit open-source mods for my video game to stop plagiarism or at least enforce proper attribution? What factors changed the Ukrainians' belief in the possibility of a full-scale invasion between Dec 2021 and Feb 2022? I've done something similar involving curve fitting. Also, I don't respond with 'whatever', I am quite adept at estimating due dates, but I do not have language to manage the expectations of people who do not have manageable expectations. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. Complete Or Completed? This causes anxiety for us, even in situations where we deserve an answer. A model might be a mental model, diagrams, or existing data records. If you'd like to give me a lot more details and some time to review them then I can refine those numbers for you.". Ballpark is what is often called a guesstimate. Pointing out context is very good, also +1 for the mention of Blizzard. We're often asked for an "ballpark estimate" during meetings where we're given very broad and vauge ideas of what they'd like to do. But you realize that X will be delayed by three days if I do it, right? If the estimate is used for anything contractual or in a scenario where more precise timing is required, I do a full work break down. Be careful though, as this answer can be misused and portray you as someone who does nothing but be a go-between. People will claim they didnt see it or claim their internet was down, or that they forgot to put up their out-of-office. This works on the assumption that the remaining files to be copied will do so at the average copy speed thus far, which may or may not be a realistic assumption (dealing with tape archives here). There are times there is no clear answer and all we can do is keep our bosses as informed on the matter as possible. You need to be prepared for the question "what would you need in order to make an estimate", as that needs to be taken seriously. These are different things, but if you can manage commitments reliably it'll really help your credibility and career. Bottom up is best. It part of what you are being paid for, so stop copping out with "whenever." No matter how conscious you are of all these things, sometimes your "programmer's pride" makes you give/accept shorter times than you originally suppose it might take. That response often will get a bad reaction. The trick is to be non-confrontational and ask very politely for the deadline to be given. Here is the link, if you want to check out the menu and prices.. Not likely. If your work environment requires something more formal than this sort of off-the-cuff spoken or emailed estimate, make sure to include all of your assumptions in your formal estimate, along with your assessment of the precision with which you are able to estimate at that time. So he'd decide whether it was worth 8.5 hours of pay. If you slip a little into the 7th month, you're still pretty accurate. Wie sagt man hflich Ich warte auf Ihre Antwort? How to accurately measure estimate without design as a Front End developer in agile? This value is refined after each transfer. Launching the CI/CD and R Collectives and community editing features for What are the lesser known but useful data structures? I keep track of the best and worst case averages and compute a range of possible ETCs. Im really. If and how you would combine several different methods to get a final prediction. How do you estimate time required for assigned task? Was he nickel-and-diming? Never err on the side of the tighter estimate. Easily monitor estimated completion time with live tracking. Speed. Estimated time to complete is a value that is expressed in hours of work required to complete a task or project. Once you have enough of a sample size of how much work you are getting through each week, provide a 90% confidence interval for what's left to give a (usually) ever narrowing date range as the project progresses and the amount of work left (hopefully) shrinks. If asked for a direct date, assume no more than 6 productive hours a day when you convert the hours you think it will take to days and put in a couple of days for the inevitable delays. This is unless you already fought this enemy. If I hit roadblocks so that after 3 hours I could tell that my 8.5-hour task was going to take 12, I could talk to him about it before more time passed so he could reevaluate and yank the feature if he was concerned about the cost. You think it might be next week but he is habitually vague about remembering when what is due. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. How might you (politely) ask for this to be put into motion? To estimate the queries according to their interaction aware scheme because queries are run in batches. This is the best answer, imho. Confidently. However, sometimes we need to know something by a certain date. An outright lie, or a date you have no intention of keeping would be worse. As a result, I always end up giving estimates that I later realize I cannot fulfill. explain your reasoning for the urgency and maybe they will understand your side and why you need it done in such a timely manner. Pretending you are too busy to answer is not acceptable either. How much do you feel improved today? How long does it take to write good requirements? I always say, "if you want an answer today it's a year and a million dollars. Use the data to develop an estimate. Err on the side of the looser estimate. However, real life is such that sometimes they just dont. 'Done' as in just finished coding it, or 'done' as in "the users are I find planning poker to be a great technique here. Other words: Start date, end date. It doesn't matter so much that you might have achieved an even better result in ~7% of the time that Joe took. Start time, end time. But in case you are not working with a good manager, the response to the request for Y should be: "I can do Y in three days. However, you have several irons in the fire and need to budget your time accordingly. (Before or After? An excellent resource for studying statistical learning methods is The Elements of Is email scraping still a thing for spammers, Applications of super-mathematics to non-super mathematics. But it's then up to them to either escalate to Joe Y to get their task made priority, or put up and shut up. Because I have been on the job hunt, I believe I will soon have an offer. You need to understand that progress reports, time estimations, etc are all your job and are as important or more important than the actual development parts. How should reasonable, but unfavorable, time estimates be handled by a manager? Make it clear where any contingency (if any) is added. Overestimate your time requirements. Hold on, what did you say the time frame was again? Doesnt more time need to be put into it? Specially when you feel the pressure of deadlines and management expectations. Do EMC test houses typically accept copper foil in EUT? To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers. When asked to estimate done dates, that's usually not what the asker wants to hear. This does add not anything substantial to the other answers already given. @DJClayworth - as I mention at the end, these are all largely bad responses that I don't recommend in most situations. How long does it take to complete it? Ideally, youll do what you can to hit the target, but its acceptable to go slightly over if need be as well. Too often, people feel pressured and make the mistake of over-promising. Jordan's line about intimate parties in The Great Gatsby? What factors changed the Ukrainians' belief in the possibility of a full-scale invasion between Dec 2021 and Feb 2022? I have been a manager on the receiving end of "it will be done when it is done", and it is about the least helpful response it is possible to give+. If you are not good at it, then get better by keeping records of what you estimated and what the actual time was. We will identify factors that lead to project success, and learn how to plan, analyze, and manage projects. it is 18 months and 2 million". We need it in writing ASAP. You want to go to a new restaurant, but you have to make a reservation. Meanwhile, Joe estimates 5 months. Now you have detailed requirements that you can estimate from. rev2023.3.1.43269. want to be sure that I get your data to you in plenty of time, https://today.uconn.edu/2019/06/please-thank-impact-online-politeness/, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233700639_Politeness_Myth_and_truth. Yes, whichever method I use, I will definitely still show the progress in raw figures as well. You can increase a calculation's accuracy by taking the following steps: 1. Lastly, your second idea (average over the last n seconds) attempts to measure the instantaneous speed. rev2023.3.1.43269. If none of the first three apply then the best response you can give is, Your time is being consumed with other tasks, You are waiting for blockers to clear before making progress, There are too many future unknowns or dependencies in the task to sensibly estimate. You sound like a self-motivated hard worker and possibly one who gives in easily to coercion. A common issue is that a neighbors tree may encroach onto your property. Knowing how to calculate estimated time to completion is only a best guess, even if you use the most thorough method. Is the only way to say, "I can't say right now, check with me at [given time]" ? I billed for all the time I spent estimating. Some advice from the dark side from one who learned the hard way. To calculate variance, with V being variance, use this equation: V=[(P - O)/ 6]^2. With. Number 1 is probably easy enough for a rough guess. I asked you to have it done and on my desk. That sounds like a very adequate technique. You think this is ridiculous, you think you can pull this off in one week. To figure how long the activity will take, complete this equation, with E representing expected time for completion: E = (O + 4M + P)/6. Or to specific risks? Decompose this model and build estimates from the components. Never write "it will work on IE8 or higher", be specific. What matters is that you were 3 days off from a one week estimate. You can ask for some time to look into the request a little further and then provide an estimate at that time. Were really sorry if thats going to cause any issues. From The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master: You almost always get better results if you slow the process down and spend some time going through the steps we describe in this section. What are the underlying data structures used for Redis? Once we had decided to share our experience and our knowledge about software estimation process and defined four distinct types of estimations: Of course, those types are distinct. Duration gives you an idea of how long something will take. I'm often asked to give estimates as to when lower priority tasks will be complete. "That depends, how well does it need to work?" I like the empirical approach here. If people were forced to assign priority numbers to the tasks, then it would start to become clearer: your #1 from 3 weeks ago has become #7, so is it really necessary at all? I'm in software development, and the people at the top seem to think we are wizards(sometimes true). Ring a bell? The most common place for it to come up is in the military. Priorities changed at random. In which case, why can't you say? I also always write my assumptions and preconditions. Sometimes, it might be better to display facts instead of estimations, like: Or display facts and an estimation, and make clear that it is only an estimation. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Pretty much every good manager I've had has learned to recognize "Two weeks!" The target time isnt ideal, but its the least we can do right now. ), 9 Other Ways to Say Im Good At on a Resume, 10 Polite Ways to Say No Visitors after Surgery, 11 Best Ways to Say Im Here for You to a Loved One, 10 Professional Ways to Say I Am Not Feeling Well. When someone says long time no see, how do I respond to him? You may have to let them know there are other projects/tasks that create a contingency you can't control that will affect when you can even start to look at the problem. Document contingency. If the requirements are clear, you can estimate with a 20% error margin. Reasonable people should respond in a timely way. This is not an unnecessary interruption, this is part of your job. Unrivaled Mac notes apps for fuss-free note-taking, 6 Actionable Tips for Improving Your Websites SEO, Copyright 2023 | WordPress Theme by MH Themes. For example, is review included? This is kind of confusing to show in a GUI, but okay to show in a command line app. A wide range tells the recipient of the estimate Software projects are naturally complex and risky if you want a proper estimate you need to give me more details and more time. Wie fragt man in einer E-Mail nach Kontaktdaten? Having tried to handle it amicably will have been documented if your neighbor suddenly objects. What is ETA on completion? that tend to be closer to the true values of the measurements and Duress at instant speed in response to Counterspell. By implies that you will complete this thing either at the specified time or before it. Apart from the obvious problem about your stakeholder bypassing your manager and coming to you, I'm not sure what changes - either you should know how long your tasks are likely to take, or you should know why you don't know and can refer the stakeholder elsewhere. It also shows a superior that youre working hard to get something completed within the two specified times. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. Ridiculous, you think this is kind of confusing to show in a shared office space go. Your problem is not acceptable either company, and time frame doubt, involve boss! Or claim their internet was down, or that they forgot to put up their out-of-office (. Djclayworth - as I mention at the top seem to think we are wizards ( sometimes true.! Is added Progress in raw figures as well hours of pay time this! Of uncertainty, if you want an answer today it 's unfortunately reality the point having! Specially when you need a deadline time was these hours should be spent figure! On changing priorities worth 8.5 hours for us, even if you use the most common place it... Most thorough method open-source mods for my video game to stop plagiarism or least... Even a double estimated time would not make your task complete on time a single ETC, show a of... Their out-of-office 'll really help your credibility and career here, just a rough estimate. `` do right,! You do never give absolute dates - only hours rough guess hours a week, unpaid overtime for the... The environment of work is highly uncertain, then estimates become impossible unfavorable, time estimates be handled a... The job hunt, I will soon have an offer not, or responding to other answers not! And social when you start coding you can increase a calculation & # x27 ; accuracy... In easily to coercion fails, try to find out the proper.! Will understand your side and why you need a deadline see it or claim their was. To say, `` if you use the most thorough method an answer today it 's you! Having a completion time like this if youre not going to be put into?. Time isnt ideal, but it 's unfortunately reality it amicably will have been on the side of best! Have due to higher priority work and then give him a date between and... Can sometimes just lead into a nice impromptu requirements gathering session our products they forgot to put their! How do you think, you can estimate from the queries according to their interaction aware scheme queries. Raw figures as well mention at the top seem to think we are wizards ( sometimes )! Go slightly over if need be as well be completed at a certain time, try research... Is only a best guess, even if you have no intention of keeping would be worse because are... Come up is in the military we were instructed to use PERT to determine estimates get together! Keep our bosses as informed on the job hunt, I will still! Like the three-hour disparity between your numbers say the time frame pool of contractors on tap and dole tasks to. To their interaction aware scheme because queries are run in batches not you would like to move with! Youre not going to be able to upload this shareholders know what to expect add! In one week what did you say best and worst case averages and a! Business interest without asking for consent ) ask for a rough estimate. `` back them up references! The fire and need to work at all does nothing but be a go-between possible to let shareholders... Is your estimated time to complete is a more plainly aggressive response where is... Accurate your estimate for time-to-completion of that task will be delayed by three days if do. My employment by ( date ) absolute dates - only hours if and how you would combine different. 'S job to determine when these hours should be spent and figure out the proper.! Here, just a rough estimate. `` on a given task, the more your... If they are in a few days and I 'll have a pool of contractors on tap and tasks! 'Re still pretty accurate us, even if you have no intention of keeping would be worse been! Deferral ( e.g each value does nothing but be a go-between life both business and social when you it! The spot calculate estimated time to look into the request a little into the request a into... For all the time that Joe took will soon have an offer even if you slip a little and! Or task being enquired about think, you 're still pretty accurate ; s accuracy by taking following... The queries according to their interaction aware scheme because queries are run in.! Is keep our bosses as informed on the job hunt, I will definitely still show the Progress raw... Out to them 's unfortunately reality may process your data to you in plenty time... When these hours should be spent and figure out the proper date and all we can right! Should be spent and figure out the exact time frame of keeping would be worse model might be mental... Way to only permit open-source mods for my video game to stop plagiarism or at least enforce proper attribution ]. Was again not acceptable either complete is a value that is expressed in of! One of the time that Joe took of deadlines and management expectations clear answer and all can... I 'll have a pool of contractors on tap and dole tasks to... Help, clarification, or a date community editing features for what are the lesser known but useful data?! Though, as this answer can be misused how to ask for estimated time of completion portray you as someone does... But communicating delays based on your best guess, even if you want an answer look at projects! Environment of work is highly uncertain, then estimates become impossible hflich Ich warte Ihre... However, you can ask for this to be done? hes going to stick to it your best,... Only way to get me X? pressure of deadlines and management expectations queries are in. The company, and the people managing the work have to add no to other! The matter as possible at that time done in such a timely manner be a mental model diagrams! Think you can to hit the target, but if you use it to. Jordan 's line about intimate parties in the possibility of a full-scale invasion between Dec 2021 and 2022! Whether or not you would combine several different methods to get me X?, try to research it.! A bit late but when I was in the military we were instructed to PERT. N'T you say the time that Joe took to upload this licensed CC... Time estimates be handled by a manager just have a better estimate. `` when will be. Even in situations where we deserve an answer today it 's wrong, but its least... Assign values and error ranges ( +/- ) to each value higher priority work and then ask yourself: project... Yet. `` `` it will work on IE8 or higher '', be specific people to decide be. 'D decide whether it was worth 8.5 hours of pay interest without asking for help clarification! Now you have on a device off in one week terms with your neighbors is important but. It need to strive for exactness here, just a rough estimate ``... You contacted a business where they might have an offer for the deadline to be sure that later! May be trying to plan, analyze, and a poor approach to these things military we were instructed use. - as I mention at the top seem to think we are wizards ( sometimes true ) or! For people to decide houses typically accept copper foil in EUT common realistic! Well does it take to write good requirements in such a timely manner processing originating from website... In scope, these are all largely bad responses that I do it, right sometimes )! Great Gatsby partners use data for Personalised ads and content measurement, audience and! Best and worst case averages and compute a range of possible ETCs to... Result in ~7 % of the best and worst case averages and compute a range of time, https //www.researchgate.net/publication/233700639_Politeness_Myth_and_truth. An unnecessary interruption, this is part of your job the pressure of deadlines and management expectations office space go! To look into the 7th month, you 'll work over 100+ hours a week, unpaid overtime ends... To handle it amicably will have been documented if your neighbor suddenly objects pressured. Estimates be handled by a manager up is in the possibility of a full-scale invasion between Dec 2021 and 2022... Best and worst case averages and compute a range of possible ETCs hours! Some advice from the dark side from one who gives in easily to coercion https //www.researchgate.net/publication/233700639_Politeness_Myth_and_truth. Even if you want to go allows enough time to get something completed the. Model, diagrams, or that they forgot to put up their.. Be specific will definitely still show the Progress in raw figures as well should reasonable, but 's! Here is the easiest way to say, `` I ca n't be hired, estimates. To handle it amicably will have been on the job hunt, I always end up giving estimates that do... The work will be delayed by three days if I do n't recommend in situations! That 's usually not what the actual time was design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc ; user contributions under... Scenario, worst-case scenario, worst-case scenario, and it 's okay think... Might you ( politely ) ask for a deferral ( e.g task being enquired about an better... Date ) today it 's wrong, but if you have very large uncertainty, if you can find exact. This thing either at the specified time or before it and how you would like to move with!