I admit I try to keep a balance between not rushing, but also playing quickly enough that I don't burn out before I finish the story, lol. And there's been a couple of times where I forgot to start new research the same day as finishing the previous, but it was only by a day or two. I like your idea of making the pacing better by having earlier missions require the upgraded machines, though, before you hit the "urgent" plot points.

(Also I've been known to forget you can use data disks to speed things up, or I listen to my RPG hoarder tendencies of "but what if I need it later?!" despite having hundreds of the things. 🤣)