The Big Picture - what's that about

As I get older strange things start to annoy me more. I don’t know why but they do. Here are just some of my current frustrations/worries:

1.???? People who don’t stack shopping trolleys by size and in a straight line – why do that?

2.???? Car drivers that having left their cars then think all car parks have somehow become pedestrian precincts – what’s that about.

3.???? People on the electoral register who don’t vote – what’s that about.

4.???? Car drivers who don’t give a sincere sign of appreciation when other motorists make way for them on single track roads – what’s that about.

5.???? Dentists opting out of the National Health Service – what’s that about.

6.???? How much wills cost now – what’s that about.

7.???? Train drivers getting more pay than doctors – why.

8.???? E-consult forms – how complicated are they.

9.???? Energy price caps – how are they calculated.

10. The definition of a pot hole – who thought that one up.

Now believe it or not the state of worrying about trivia that being when someone becomes overly fixated on minor details and loses sight of the bigger picture is described as Bike-shedding. It is also known as Parkinson’s Law of Triviality.

Something else to add to the worry list.

Now according to Wikipedia, so it must be true The?law of triviality?is?C. Northcote Parkinson's 1957 argument that people within an organization commonly give disproportionate weight to trivial issues.?Parkinson provides the example of a fictional committee whose job was to approve the plans for a?nuclear power plant?spending the majority of its time on discussions about relatively minor but easy-to-grasp issues, such as what materials to use for the staff bicycle shed, while neglecting the proposed design of the plant itself, which is far more important and a far more difficult and complex task.

Maybe Council’s should worry less about the definition of a pothole – “A pothole is a hole in the road?that is?deeper?than 50mm and 100mm across in two directions at right angles to each other (perpendicular)” and focus more on the highway big picture, whatever that might be.

So, let’s all only worry about the big picture issues and put aside the trivia. The trouble is trivia is easier to focus on than the forward-thinking big picture ticket items. Is your business a big picture thinker or are you more concerned about the furnishing in reception?

Now I don’t have to worry about big picture items in business as I am retired. That said what might my big picture retirements issues be if only I could put aside the trivia.

Well certainly maintaining good health, can’t get away from the e-consult form. Continuing to grow as a person no question, stretching myself. Continuing to give something back to the community I live in that’s a given, however that requires in part measuring potholes.

I suppose at the end of the day one person’s trivia is another’s big picture item. Maybe the biggest thing is just to be me but with less worry on the state of parked shopping trolleys and stop worrying about being worried about trivial issues.

Now that’s got me worried.

"Sometimes you have to disconnect to stay connected. Remember the old days when you had eye contact during a conversation? When everyone wasn't looking down at a device in their hands? We've become so focused on that tiny screen that we forget the big picture, the people right in front of us." - Regina Brett