I have run into this thing called scope creep so many times I thought it begged to be addressed this week. Scope creep happens in all kinds of ways and in all sorts of places. This phenomenon usually costs time and money, so it is something to be aware of.
It’s usually something we associate with a home renovation project and is also known as "you might as well." It can also happen when you’re redecorating your space or when you’re organizing your home and sometimes it happens at work. Sometimes it happens without you realizing it did and often catches up with you after it’s too late.
What am I talking about? Here’s an example of a tiny bit of scope creep that just happened to me. I was out shopping for a client project and came home with a new blanket for my bedroom. I couldn’t resist. Yes, even I fall prey to buying things I don’t technically need. Anyway, the blanket looks lovely along the bottom of my bed and will be soft and cozy for a cold night.
Then it happened. I decided to move the toss cushions from the living room into the bedroom because they were the right color and are also soft and cozy. Naturally the red toss cushions from the bedroom went to the sofa in place of the ones I took off. Then I stood back and thought to myself. Well now, I need a third toss cushion with some pattern and a bit of red to go with those other two. That means I need new artwork. Three pieces of new artwork in fact. I have been losing interest in the teal, aqua and green shades that serve as accent colours in my space and want to add some bolder colors so I might as well.
If I do that, then I must repaint or buy a new storage cabinet for the entrance of my tiny space because I painted that cabinet teal a few years ago and now it won’t match anything. Technically that entrance cabinet isn’t the right size for my tiny space and should have been replaced when I moved in last year. But it took me a lot of time and effort to paint that piece so, as you do, I am having trouble letting go. I am trying to remind myself that I got the cabinet for free and now it might be time to pass it along to someone else.
Another example of scope creep is a decorating project I am currently working on with a client. This situation is going to be more costly and time consuming than mine. A few years ago, we built a gorgeous custom cabinet for her television next to the fireplace and completely refaced her old open fireplace and installed a modern, electric wall-hung fireplace. At the time, we decided not to replace her living room furniture but did buy a new rug and have new draperies made and painted the room.
Well, you guessed it, we have just replaced her sofa and chair and now nothing else looks right. I just delivered her new living room rug which looks gorgeous with the new furniture but now we need to buy new draperies and paint the fireplace wall a different color. And the end tables don’t look right anymore so those must go as well and so on ...
This was not totally unexpected, however, probably because I am familiar with scope creep. We had the discussion when we ordered the furniture that everything else would probably have to go. What I failed to do was to have that discussion with myself when I bought the blanket. Lesson learned.
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