Work Expands!

Apple pushed off the launch of their HomePod because they needed “a little more time” to refine it. Windows continuously delayed an anticipated feature for Windows 10, before quietly axing it altogether. Even construction of the Sydney Opera House was only supposed to take four years. It ended up taking 14.

Studies suggest that when given a task, we think of how much time is available to complete the task instead of how much time we actually need. This mindset results in wasted time and inefficient workflows. This is often why we, as humans, feel the need to take all the time we’re given to complete a task even if it doesn’t require that much time.

But why does this happen?

Why does team productivity (and as a result, your schedule) run off the rails?

Parkinson’s Law has a lot to do with it.

Parkinson's Law is the idea that work expands to fill the time available.

Cyril Northcote Parkinson was a British naval historian," author of some 60 books, the most famous of which was his best-seller Parkinson's Law: The Pursuit of Progress.

?In the book he introduced the concept of Parkinson’s Law.

Prior to that, in a satirical essay written for “The Economist” in 1955, he had used this concept for the first time. His story in the essay involved a woman whose sole task for the day was to send a postcard.

Because she had the entire day to complete this task, she used to spend an hour finding the card, half an hour finding her glasses, 90 minutes writing the card, and so forth until she filled her day. The story vividly illustrates how work expands to fill the time allotted.

Dear Readers of One Step Forward, Parkinson’s Law applies to pretty much everything.

No one is immune to Parkinson’s Law until they recognize it and find ways to personally overcome it.

Elon Musk's insane productivity is the result of Parkinson's Law.

In an interview, Elon explained,

"if you give yourself 30 days to clean your house, it will take 30 days. But if you give yourself just 3 hours, it will take 3 hours".