answer:A deadline has consequences. Of the things you listed, only finishing the deck before the client goes to Asia is a deadline; if you want to get paid, it needs to be completed when you say it’s going to be completed. Vacation – arbitrary, both in terms of date or where you go. If you set a goal of saving $3000 to go to Europe, and you only save $300, you can always go camping. Restoring the boat – you may want to have it ready for the spring, but if you run into termite damage, or the new ports cost $16,000 and it takes you until next summer to get it finished – it is what it is. Career – if you know you’re going to be laid off or you are laid off and your severence is going to end by a certain date, then that might be a self-imposed deadline, because there are consequences. However, if you’re thinking about changing jobs by a certain date, and don’t meet that date because you didn’t try, then that’s a goal.