This reflective essay explores two related themes in writing and communication. The first section examines how grammar and punctuation errors appear in everyday public signage—drawing on Lynne Truss's Eats, Shoots & Leaves as a central example—and explains how such mistakes can alter meaning and damage the credibility of the author. The second section turns inward, offering an honest self-assessment of the writer's personal habits, particularly a well-documented struggle with procrastination and time management. The author describes a cycle in which schedules are made and revised, deadlines compress available preparation time, and higher-quality outcomes emerge only when extra time appears unexpectedly—reinforcing, rather than breaking, the habit.
A favorite example of the importance of proper grammar—and of the significance of minor mistakes in punctuation—is memorialized in the title of Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss (Penguin Group USA, 2003). The title is a reference to a description of a Giant Panda, and the picture on the cover depicts a Giant Panda walking away from a crime scene holding a pistol. The illustration is meant to highlight the significance of an incorrectly placed comma that changes the meaning of the words entirely: instead of describing the dietary habits of a panda—which consists of shoots and leaves—the misplaced comma transforms the sentence into a statement that pandas eat, then shoot, and then leave the scene of the shooting.
One finds similar examples all the time: signs in storefront windows that announce "Were Open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM" (instead of We're Open…); private property entrances that warn "Park here at you're own risk" (instead of your own risk); parking lot signs that read "You're keys must be left inside your vehicle" (instead of Your keys); and a sign warning that "These elevators are alarmed 24/7/365," which suggests that big-city life may take an emotional toll on elevators as much as it does on human beings.
In general, grammar and punctuation mistakes can completely change the way communications are interpreted and understood. In most cases it is still possible to infer the intended meaning; however, incorrectly worded or punctuated signs—and other communications more generally—can detract from the credibility of the author. Whereas that may not particularly matter in the case of a sign posted in a parking garage, the result might be completely different in situations where the literacy or communication skills of the author are important factors in the specific nature of the business. Making ignorant or illiterate mistakes in public-facing communications can undermine trust in ways that are difficult to recover from.
I am not necessarily the last one to finish assignments, but there is an entirely different reason that I often have great difficulty turning in my best work: poor time management and magical thinking about how much time is necessary for specific tasks. I find it very hard to stick to a schedule, although I am very good at drawing them up. The problem is that I am even better at revising them to accommodate my procrastination. "In theory," all of my revisions are workable because it is "hypothetically possible" to work on each specific task for the exact amount of time allocated to it in my revised schedule—and to eat, shower, shave, walk the dog, and answer email in thirty minutes in between. In practice, however, everything that could under ideal circumstances be accomplished in the exact time allocated actually ends up taking much longer, and that does not include the downtime in between that often occurs whether it is "scheduled" or not.
Purely from a technical perspective, my writing habits are not that bad: I know how to free-write my ideas; I am good at organizing them into logical order afterward; I make solid outlines; and I am able to develop those outlines into rough drafts and a final product. The principal problem I encounter is that all of this tends to occur within a much shorter time frame than necessary for optimal results, because of my tendency to procrastinate. I have become so conditioned to procrastinating that it is very difficult to get into the right frame of mind for concentrated writing unless I am already under significant time pressure.
"Deadlines compress time and compromise final quality"
It is no coincidence that on the rare occasions when I had more time all along without realizing it until the last minute, or where a deadline was unexpectedly extended, I received higher grades than I usually receive for my projects and on my examinations. I realize, at least consciously, that this is a problem I could solve relatively easily with better time management skills and habits. However, it is, admittedly, very difficult to imagine conquering this particular problem because it seems so much a part of my natural makeup. Finally, the fact that I am sometimes able to achieve good results anyway only makes it harder to break the habit—because it reinforces it instead.
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