PSYCHOLOGY
management
psychology
priorities
time
Law of Triviality: Bikeshedding
A committee will spend 5 minutes approving a $10 million nuclear reactor, but 45 minutes debating the color of the bike shed. Why? Because everyone understands a bike shed.
C. Northcote Parkinson• 5 min read
The Inverse Relationship
Parkinson observed that the time spent on an item in an agenda is inversely proportional to its cost.
- Nuclear Reactor ($10M): Too complex. No one wants to look stupid. "Approved."
- Bike Shed ($2,000): Everyone has an opinion on paint color. "Let's debate for an hour."
Avoiding Hard work
Bikeshedding is a form of procrastination. We tackle trivial issues because they make us feel productive and competent. We avoid complex issues because they are scary. If your meeting is dragging on about coffee filters, you are bikeshedding. Stop it and go back to the nuclear reactor.