Impossible Deadlines Reveal What Matters Most
This week I have been thinking a lot about deadlines, focus, and pressure.
In his book, The Science of Scaling, Benjamin Hardy writes that impossible deadlines are not about speed for speed’s sake. Their real purpose is to filter out what does not matter and force clarity around what actually drives results.
That notion immediately conjured vivid memories of my time in Army Ranger School.
During the 14-day field exercise in the mountain phase, every student is required to lead a mission. You do not know when your turn to lead is coming. One night, I was selected to lead the mission immediately after the student who had the longest planning cycle in the entire phase.
His planning window lasted twenty-four hours.
Mine lasted fifteen minutes.
Both missions were nearly identical. Same terrain. Same objective. Same expectations from the cadre. The difference was the allotment of time.
This lesson was simple, yet brutal: you can accomplish the mission with very little time, but only if your focus and execution are extraordinary.
Both leaders were under pressure. The long planning cycle created pressure to be perfect and detailed. The short planning cycle created pressure to be efficient and decisive. Both required the same planning process. Both required the same content. But only one allowed room for noise.
The fifteen-minute plan had no margin for anything unnecessary. And that is exactly what Hardy is getting at.
When timelines are long, we tolerate inefficiency. We overthink. We add steps that feel productive but do not move the mission forward. When time is compressed, clarity shows up fast. You are forced to ask better questions.
What actually matters?
What can be eliminated?
What must be decided now?
As leaders, we often complain about pressure while unknowingly protecting inefficiency.
Impossible deadlines expose that.
They reveal where we are wasting time. They reveal bloated processes. They reveal where focus has drifted from outcomes to activity.
There is also a deeper leadership lesson to be learned here:
Clarity creates confidence. Confidence creates hope.
When a team sees a clear plan, even under pressure, their belief in their ability to succeed rises. They stop worrying about the timeline and start trusting the process. Hope shows up when people believe success is inevitable if they execute.
Scripture reminds us that God is not a God of confusion, but of peace. Confusion thrives in excess. Peace thrives in clarity.
Steady Leaders do not wait for perfect conditions. They simplify, decide, and move. They protect the process, not the noise. They understand that pressure does not break good leadership; it reveals it.
I challenge you to consider the following as you move into the final weeks of 2025:
What deadlines in your life or business need to be shortened?
What steps in your process no longer matter?
Where are you mistaking activity for progress?
You may not need more time. You may just need more clarity.
Stay steady.
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God Bless!
~ Schuyler Williamson