The connection between deadlines and journalism is obvious: this column would never have been written without one. But deadlines are critical to every organisation. They are an antidote(解毒剂，对抗物) to procrastination. They deal with the problem of diminishing returns(收益递减). And they set the rhythm of a workplace, co-ordinating(协调，统筹) the activities of many teams and individuals.
截止日期与新闻业之间的联系显而易见：没有截止日期，本专栏永远不会被写出来。但截止日期对每个组织都至关重要。它们是拖延症的解毒剂。它们处理收益递减的问题。它们设定工作场所的节奏，协调许多团队和个人的活动。
First, procrastination(拖延症，拖延行为). The tendency to put things off for no good reason is a fundamental part of the human condition. Hesiod(赫西俄德，古希腊诗人), an ancient Greek poet, warned that idlers were liable never to fill their barns. A paper written about 2,700 years later, by Brenda Nguyen of the University of Lethbridge and her co-authors, finds that things have not changed much since (besides the barns).(大约2700年后，莱斯布里奇大学的布伦达·阮及其合著者撰写的一篇论文发现，情况自那时以来没有太大变化（除了谷仓）。) In a survey of some 22,000 individuals, they find that a disposition(倾向，性格) to procrastination is associated with lower incomes and reduced employment.
首先是拖延症。毫无理由地推迟事情是人类天性的基本组成部分。古希腊诗人赫西俄德警告说，懒汉很可能永远填不满谷仓。大约2700年后，莱斯布里奇大学的布伦达·阮及其合著者撰写的一篇论文发现，情况自那时以来没有太大变化（除了谷仓）。在一项对约22000人的调查中，他们发现拖延倾向与较低的收入和就业率降低相关。
In another paper, Piers Steel of the University of Calgary and his co-authors examined the behaviour of arbitrators(仲裁员，公断人) in workplace-grievance procedures in Canada. Arbitrators have a lot of control when it comes to(当谈到，在……方面) writing their decisions: they can, in effect, set their own timetables. They are also expected to act swiftly to settle cases. Arbitrators who scored one standard deviation above the mean for self-reported procrastination took 83 days to write decisions, compared with 26 days for those one standard deviation below the mean.(自我报告拖延程度高于平均值一个标准差的仲裁员需要83天来撰写裁决，而低于平均值一个标准差的人只需26天。)
在另一篇论文中，卡尔加里大学的皮尔斯·斯蒂尔及其合著者研究了加拿大工作场所申诉程序中仲裁员的行为。仲裁员在撰写裁决方面有很大的控制权：他们实际上可以自行设定时间表。他们也被期望迅速采取行动解决案件。自我报告拖延程度高于平均值一个标准差的仲裁员需要83天来撰写裁决，而低于平均值一个标准差的人只需26天。