The schedule is divided into a number of separate time periods (timeboxes), with each part having its own deliverables, deadline and budget.
[12] Timeboxes are used as a form of risk management, to explicitly identify uncertain task/time relationships, i.e., work that may easily extend past its deadline.
A common planning error is inadequate task breakdown, which can lead to underestimation of the time required to perform the work.
To stay on deadline, the following actions against the triple constraints are commonly evaluated: Many successful software development projects use timeboxing, especially smaller ones.
[14] However, Steve McConnell argues that not every product is suitable[14] and that timeboxing should only be used after the customer agrees to cut features, not quality.
In many types of projects, and especially in software engineering, analyzing and defining all requirements and specifications before the start of the realization phase is impossible.
Personal timeboxing is also said to act as a life hack to help curb perfectionist tendencies (by setting a firm time and not overcommitting to a task) which can also enhance creativity and focus (by creating a sense of urgency or increased pressure).