Mrs. Parkinson’s Law by C Northcote Parkinson

Mrs. Parkinson’s Law is one of those books which can’t be read in one go. It takes time to really digest and savor what is said in each chapter and then mull over how interesting the author, C. Northcote Parkinson’s mind works.

He insists that this book is not about his wife or solely her experiences. The book presents a funny view about various things like romance, marriage, hosts and guests, escape, etc. and yes, also about Mrs. Parkinson’s law, which goes like this:

 Heat produced by domestic pressure expands to fill the mind available from which it can pass only to a cooler mind.

And it can be explained by the following equation:

Of course, humor is not the sole aim of this book. There are some good thoughts presented like – ‘What we regard as normal is peculiar, in fact, to our country and our age. Elsewhere and at other times people have had quite different ideas.’  Or that ‘The person who lives for pleasure is like the blind man in the dark room looking for a black cat that is not there. By the very nature of things he is doomed to disappointment.’

All in all, it’s a good Sunday read!

On an aside – he also put forth this theory in one of his previous books “Work expands to fill the time available for its completion” and laws like -  ‘Parkinson’s Law of Delay – Delay is the deadliest form of denial.’

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