Have you ever been given a task that has to be completed ASAP with vague instructions and an unrealistic timeline? One would try to do their best, often at the expense of their work-life balance, and when the task is complete and handed over on time, then… it just sits there on their desk for weeks until it is finally checked. By this point, the external deadline is close, and then they send your work back with all the corrections, which once again must be completed as soon as possible!

I have, and I call it a Boomerang Emergency. It is a task that creates unnecessary stress, with a tight, often unrealistic deadline. Then, when it has been delivered on time, it sort of disappears, only to return this time with even higher stakes and double the panic!

In my experience, it creates a very insecure environment, as you never know when the next Boomerang Emergency may hit. I have only experienced this phenomenon as a cycle of emergency mode and then a calm period, only for it to happen again a few weeks later all over again. In my observations, it usually occurs in concurrence with micromanagement styles. The Boomerang Emergency is initiated by a superior, when there is a sense of loss of authority, and then they try to reassert the importance of trivial tasks and their control of the workflow.

The problem with this type of task management is that it erodes the understanding of real, factual urgent tasks, and employees will inevitably begin to lower their efforts or the quality of their work. It also poses a high risk of burnout, as nothing feels safe and the environment becomes stressful and uncomfortable, as missing the deadline would be seen as failure.

This type of management is in fact not effective for building authentic authority or respect from one’s team. It will come across as arrogant and disrespectful to the people who sacrifice other tasks and their own work-life balance to meet the deadlines, only for the completed work to be left untouched for weeks, as the external deadline was in fact further into the future.

I have yet to find methods that smoothly counter this cycle without the risk of the superior doubling down on the Boomerang Emergency, as it only exposes a perceived lack of workflow management on their part.

But by giving it a name and talking about it, it might become easier to spot and address the in the future.