Trials and tribulations of failure - A valuable lesson in Time Management

Today I have failed. I took on more than I could accomplish. I had to prepare two cars for testing which involved fetching parts, checkovers/inspections, and getting fluids changed. I had to speak to someone whom I have never met before, in an area I wasn't familiar with. When I couldn't reach him over the phone, I moved onto the next task. I hadn't even taken lunch but I accomplished all other things that needed to be done, and finally tackled the last task from earlier (brake fluid change) I went over to the department, the contact wasn't there, and I asked the co-workers if it was possible. They said there was no time left, and it would have to wait till next Tuesday (the cars will underway by then).

I feel pretty disappointed and my boss assured me it wasn't to big of a deal. He said that he will have the brake fluid changed at the testing area. I still feel as though I let people down. I don't want to be seen as unreliable and this could have been easily avoided. It was a very hard lesson of learning how to manage time and prioritize. If I can offer ANY advice from this experience it is one word:

ASK


If you aren't sure, ask
If you need help, ask
If you are in over your head, ask (to delegate)
If you don't know who your contact is, ask

Even if everyone is slammed with work, extremely busy, it is better to ask for clarification than to do your work incorrectly (or not at all).  You aren't going to annoy anyone, you aren't going to be frowned upon for not knowing how to accomplish something. The purpose of the internship is to gain knowledge in the field/industry and sometimes you can only do so by asking for clarification. I took on more than I could accomplish and I don't know if it was a matter of pride/over enthusiasm/willingness to take on new tasks....but I should have asked for assistance early on. Lesson learned.

...it also doesn't help that it was the Friday before a holiday so people were leaving early anyhow. This may have contributed to the shorter time frame of available assistance, but it shouldn't have been a problem if I contacted my co-workers ahead of time.



This weekend a friend is visiting from Braunschweig; We may be going to Salzburg tomorrow for some sight seeing. It's also his first time in München so I'm sure there will be some city sights to be seen.