Why did you write this book?
I come across so many people where I wish they had had the benefit of the training in project management which I have had. They are just ordinary people, youngsters wanting to start their own business, ladies at the WI planning a big fund raising event or someone who wants to move house and job and can’t think how they can do it all at once. So often they seem intimidated by the size of the challenge and they just don’t know where to start.
As a civil engineer I’ve delivered huge construction and business projects but I’ve also studied NLP and other personal development approaches. These techniques tell you how to manage your own feelings and emotions, but often they stop short of showing you how put your plans into action. This requires the basic techniques of project management – breaking something down etc etc
What was the inspiration behind the title ‘How to Eat an Elephant’?
Well, trying to eat an elephant might seem like an impossible task. It’s far too big to tackle and you might wonder where on earth you should start. How on earth would you cook it, let alone eat it? If you were faced with an elephant as the only thing to eat, there’s only one way you could go about it. You’d have to break the elephant up into bite-size chunks, or pieces that are at least manageable and which you can fit in a cooking pot. In the same way, every big job can be broken down into a series of smaller tasks which are more manageable. If you keep going, bite by bite, chunk by chunk, meal by meal, you will finish the elephant in the end. How long it would take would depend on the circumstances: the size of the elephant, what you have to cut it up with and cook it in and how many other people are helping – cutting up the elephant, tending the cooking and, of course, joining in the eating. Similarly, a large job can be done in a number of ways and the time taken may vary according to how many other people are helping.
What is an important message you want your book to give?
Everyone can acheive so much more than they imagine!
There are all sorts of reasons why people don’t own up to having a dream. Some feel they have no right to want something as grand or as ambitious. Sadly, in the UK many people still feel they should not have ‘ideas above their station’. Often they are afraid that people will ridicule their ambitions. I remember when I had my annual appraisal with one boss; he asked what my ambition was. I replied honestly that I’d love to be a director of a company. He laughed at me and told me that was rather ambitious. That was in 1992. In 2000 I was made director of North Surrey Water Company. Admittedly, I was director for less than a year as it was decided at my first board meeting to merge with my old company. Still, it gave me huge satisfaction to know that I’d proved the sceptical boss from my past wrong (although he had retired by that time).
You’ve had a rather extraordinary life, were you always so daring?
NO! When I was younger, I had the opportunity to be sponsored by a local rotary club to study overseas for a year. Although I was short-listed for the award, I later pulled out as I had a nice flat and was worried that I might not find another place as nice to live in when I returned. When it was too late, I was really sorry I’d thrown away such an opportunity. I also decided against applying for some jobs as I wasn’t sure what they would bring and wasn’t even sure I could do the job. It wasn’t until I started admitting these things to my friends that I found out that quite a few of them had done similar things.
How to Eat an Elephant By Jo Parker
You can buy this book now from Amazon. Price £10.99
