The Easy Way To Get Your Family To Work

Need help getting your work done, specifically those small chores that seem to pile up as the day goes on?  Do you need help getting your kids to help out around the house?

If you answered yes to either question, I’ve got an easy way to help you to get the work done.

All you need is a timer.  You can use the timer app on your smartphone, microwave timer, kitchen timer, or an app like Focus Booster.  Set the timer and get to work.

Yes, its that easy.

I had two separate situations this weekend where I needed my husband and 8 year old son’s help for tasks that neither of us wanted to do.  The first task was to clean up the boy’s room and quickly sort through the piles to create a keep and toss pile and restore order.  The second task was to help put the house back together after a weekend of having my family visit.  Neither task was fun but both were necessary.

My solution was to explain what the task was and that we only had to work on it for 15 minutes.  The plan was to get as much done as we could in 15 minutes and when the time was up, the work stopped.  And in both situations, when the time was up the work was done.

They didn’t know it, but I used Parkinson’s Law to help me get the work done.

Parkinson’s Law states “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion”.

I gave them 15 minutes to do the work and it was done in 15 minutes.  If I would have given them an hour to do the work, it would have taken the full hour.  And 15 minutes is the perfect length of time for my husband and son to work on a chore.  Its short enough that they can stick with the task without losing focus and long enough that I can get some real work out of them.

Parkinson’s Law works at home and in the office.  Set a timer, do nothing but work on the task at hand, and when the time’s up and the work’s done.  And even if the work isn’t completely done, you just made 15 minutes worth of progress.  It’s so simple and yet the simplicity is what it makes it so brilliant.  No fancy gadgets or complicated systems.  Set a timer, work, and stop working when the timer goes off.

Everyone wins.  I’m happy the work is done and I didn’t have to nag anyone.  And my family is happy because I’m happy.

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