JKR's "Divide by three" comment - "Rule of Three"

[Steve]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "amdorn" <amdorn at h...> wrote:
> 
> ...  In the Rubbish Bin section JKR talks about getting government 
> approval for an addition to her home.  Which would supposedly give
> her a mansion with fifteen bedrooms.  My question pertains to her 
> comment at the bottom of this page. . . . 
> 
> "Actually, it now occurs to me that 'divide-by-three' is a good rule 
> to apply to a lot of 'news' stories."
> 
> This comment struck me as funny today. What news would she be
> talking about?  ...edited...
> 
> Amdorn

bboyminn:

Well, in this case, she was specifically talking about the press's
tendency to exaggerate and overblow every detail of a story in order
to /create/ News. Her alleged 15 bedroom mansion was really a 5
bedroom house.

That said, there is a general 'Rule of Three' that applies to may
aspect of life. Most project managers are very familiar with it.

When it comes to time management, take you best guess as to how long a
project will take, then multiply by 3, and you will have a pretty
close estimate of the /actual/ time it will take.

When it comes to budgets and money management, make your best guess as
to the cost of a project, then multiply by 3, and you'll hit it pretty
close to the actual amount.

This also works in a negative direction. When you are estimating how
much money you will make on some venture, take your best guess and
divide by 3, and it will be pretty realistic. 

When the auto mechanic estimates a $100 repair, plan on $300.

When the building contactor says he will have your remodeling done in
1 week, plan on 3.

When a drive is estimated at an hour, plan on 3; 1 hour driving, 1
hour fighting traffic, and 1 hour being lost.

The 'Rule of Three' applies to anything and everything you can think of.

Just passing it along.

Steve/bboyminn