In which Wolf opens day 1's door... Watch this episode on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/PQq7XGRTunU
Welcome to the Beware of Wolf Advent Calendar of Bad Thinking. To celebrate the holidays, I'm counting down the days until Christmas with a common type of bad thinking each day, described in 60 seconds. This holiday season, give the gift of good thinking by sharing these videos with your friends!
Today is Day 1: "Bike-Shedding"
Yesterday I related the thought experiment called "Russell's Teapot." Today on the final day of our advent calendar, I want to leave you with another thought experiment: "Parkinson's Bike Shed".
In 1957 historian C. Northcote Parkinson imagined a committee convened to approve the design of a proposed nuclear reactor, but that ends up spending the majority of its time discussing what color the employee bike shed should be.
You may have found yourself in situations like this, either on a team working with others, or when working alone: lost in a long list of trivial tasks when you know you have something bigger and far more important to be focusing on.
Part of the reason we focus on the little stuff is that we tend to know a lot about it. Expert knowledge of nuclear power plant design is hard to come by, but everyone has an opinion on the color of a bike shed.
"Bike shedding" as it has become known is a real danger to productivity, because focusing on trivialities gives the false impression that work time is being used productively. The role of a leader is to keep the team focused on the mission. One way to do this is to immediately delegate as much authority as possible for minor decisions, like the design of the bike shed, to the smallest possible number of people.
And when you catch yourself focusing on the "trivial many" instead of the "important few," it's also time to step up and lead. Practice being mindful about how you're really spending your time, and realize that the hardest part of getting something important done, is often just getting started.
Happy Holidays, and may your New Year be filled with great thinking!