In my business, there are a lot of tasks I do regularly. So you would think I could accurately assess how long they take. That is true sometimes. But for some tasks, I am consistently off. Some I imagine taking way longer and some taking way less, why is that?

And how many of you other makers do this?

Tasks I always imagine taking longer than they really do;

Sewing on snaps
Sewing on a doll's face
Cleaning my studio
Sewing Shoes
Posting on Instagram
Finishing and blocking a doll sweater
Returning an email
Hemming
Cutting stuff out
Making trim and binding

Tasks I always imagine taking less time than they really do;

Applying doll hair
Smocking a dress
Preparing a doll to ship
Listing anything on Etsy
Photographing for Etsy
Knitting a doll sweater
Photographing and editing photos for a tutorial
Writing a blog post
Photographing period
Editing a photo in Photoshop

On some of the tasks in the second category, they consistently take much longer than I expect, and I continually think that the next time this will go quicker. But it doesn't. I am failing to see the pattern.

One might guess that my ability to gauge time has to do with how much I like the task, but that is not it. I LOVE smocking, photographing, adding doll hair, writing and I like sewing shoes, emailing, etc... Even sewing on snaps.

When I look at the two lists, I see a definite pattern. The tasks that take longer than I imagine are tasks where there is more room for error and more room for being a perfectionist about every little detail. I tend to over-worry about details, get super fussy, redo what I imagine needs redoing and then redo again. Stop, stare, contemplate, obsess.

All of the things in the second list are conducive to these tendencies I have.

The first list, not so much. In fact most of these tasks are such second nature to me that I glide through the tasks in a bit of a happy Zen like trance, even a bit sad when the task is over. Most likely because they are a bit like yoga or running, they calm me down.

What I need to work on more than my ability to gauge time is to make this second group of tasks second nature, so they feel like the first group.