Whenever you need to accomplish a task, always do it right the first time. Take the time necessary to ensure proper quality commensurate with the importance and complexity of the task. Otherwise, several things can occur, in order of ascending severity:
- You end up having to do it again anyway (which makes the job take even longer since now you have to do it twice). Besides being a hassle, this wastes time and/or money.
- If poor quality or cutting corners, becomes a habit you’ll end up with a bad reputation – from your teachers, peers, friends, bosses, or customers.
- In the extreme cases, there could be legal consequences – or worse, people could be hurt or killed, depending on the task or project (e.g., aircraft maintenance work, auto repair, bridge design, etc.).
[Note: I originally wrote this as a life lesson for my son on November 24, 2015.]