It is important to understand that even if we use the same word we could mean/understand different things.
When people ask "How long job will take" they may be interested in any of the following:
- How long will you mostlikely spend doing the job
- What is the best-case scenario?
- When the job will be most certainly completed (worst case scenario)?
There're at least 63% chance you misunderstood the question. It might be the case that person who asks you doesn't know what they are interested themselves.
- So what you should do instead? Consider these options:
- Ask what figure they are interested in (mostlikely, best-case, worst case)
- Provide all three estimates
- If person needs a single number - suggest them checking 3 point estimations (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U5UpDmI77A&t=115s)
If you want to know more about why estimates are usually wrong and what one can do about them - feel free to check this video:
Top comments (2)
Real issue here!
What I usually do is that I say something like that.
interesting approach, thanks for sharing!