What is Parkinson’s Law and why is it sabotaging your productivity?

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.

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 old adage that work expands to fill the time allotted for its completion. The term was first coined by Cyril Northcote Parkinson in a humorous essay he wrote for “The Economist” in 1955. He shares the story of a woman whose only task in a day is to send a postcard – a task which would take a busy person approximately three minutes. But the woman spends an hour finding the card, another half hour looking for her glasses, 90 minutes writing the card, 20 minutes deciding whether or not to take an umbrella along on her walk to the mailbox … and on and on until her day is filled. Read his original article here.

Let’s look at an updated example. You and your team have two weeks to complete a relatively simple bug fix. Realistically, it should only take a few hours.

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