I would like to know what people on here do when they have a workload which is at maximum, and then they find a task they have runs over time. Examples:

• Technical tasks which are difficult to solve and there appears to be no available help
• Full/Busy work days and another project/job/task arrives which cannot be avoided
• Deadlines are very close but something needs changing at the last minute to solve a problem, but this would cause the deadline (and possibly others) to be missed

While I realise most people will answer with responses such as:

• Keep your manager informed of progress
• Track how much you have going on and try to set realistic expectations
• etc

What are other things one can do when they realise they are in a bind at the 11th hour?

One final example, which is much more close to home than the generic scenarios above, would be:

• Numerous deadlines are very close and the technical challenges which appeared solved, now appear more complex and unsolved and I am responsible for solving them, which will require a lot more thinking time/investigation, while I'm suddenly given support of something/someone to do which requires even more of my time

I would request that, before answering, you consider a very real situation which you had previously that you perhaps failed at dealing with suitably, but which you now do not because you have the experience/knowledge to handle.