How to guesstimate your tasks
Time constraints can be stressful when you receive tasks you have never handled before and do not know how long they will take. We often overthink how long it will take to complete said tasks. When I was still a junior developer, I fumbled giving out my man-days randomly to the project manager because I did not know where to start. I did not live up to my expectations when I failed to meet the deadline. It took me some time to learn from these mistakes, and in this article, I will teach you how to guesstimate how long to complete your tasks.
Check your schedule
When you receive your tasks, check your schedule for any pending tasks that need to be completed. Then, plan your new work around that. This will give you ample time to finish it without worrying about leaving any work unattended or juggling multiple things at once.
Understand the tasks required to be completed
To make estimation easier, break down tasks into the smallest work unit. Smaller tasks are more straightforward to estimate than a big chunk. For example, when working on a new feature, list everything you need to do to complete it.
A backend work that needs a new CRUD REST API can be broken down like this:
From this, you would know which specific tasks can be grouped together and which need to be completed separately.
Find similar tasks that you have done before
If you have ever done any similar tasks before, do note down how long you have taken to complete them before and use it to estimate the time required to finish the subset of work. Fill in each unit of work as much as possible. For tasks you can't compare with previous ones; roughly estimate it based on the size of the unit of work. Finally, give yourself some buffer for any unforeseen events.
If we update the above list, it will look like this:
The Fudge Ratio
To get a more accurate estimate in the future, you can use the Fudge Ratio. The Fudge Ratio is the proportion of which you overestimate or underestimate the time you will take to complete any task. You can then use the ratio to improve your accuracy by just making an instinctive estimate and multiplying your Fudge Ratio. Here's an example of how to use it: record your actual time (X), then divide it by your estimated time to complete your task (Y). If you estimate your time at 3 hours and take 6 hours to complete it, 6/3 = 2. In the future, if you estimate your time at 1 hour, you can plan to give yourself 2 hours to complete it. Then all you have to do next is repeat the steps when completing your future tasks by retaking your Fudge Ratio. Your ratio will get more and more accurate.
I tend to underestimate the time taken to complete certain tasks, but the more experience I gain, the better I budget my estimates. If you feel you're bad at estimating tasks, fret not and learn from your previous mistakes. It's the only way for you to grow as you get more experience in your work.