The 80-20 rule, that 80% of an outcome generally came from only 20% of its inputs.Take advantage of this knowledge and find out what that activities are a part of that 20 percent.For example, say you're an agency owner looking for clients. You spend 30 minutes a day emailing potential clients and 1 hour messaging and maintaining the businesses social media account. Only 1 client was referred to you by social media, whereas you have 5 clients were gained through email. It's clear that you should shift your time to email outreach if you want to maximize your clients.

the 80/20 rule- how can it change your life

<img src="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb07de3f90b82a5e1a4d2449a5900c67?s=400&amp;d=mm&amp;r=g" alt="Kevin Kruse" width="64" height="64"><fbs-cordial type="Follow" natural-id="blogAuthorId/blog/author/155287" author-slug="kevinkruse" page-position="top" state="Follow"><button aria-label="Follow Author">Follow</button></fbs-cordial>What is the 80/20 Rule and could it actually make 80% of your work disappear?If you’ve studied business or economics, you’re well familiar with the power of the Pareto Principle.The Man Behind The ConceptVilfredo Federico Damaso Pareto was born in Italy in 1848. He would go on to become an important philosopher and economist. Legend has it that one day he noticed that 20% of the pea plants in his garden generated 80% of the healthy pea pods. This observation caused him to think about uneven distribution. He thought about wealth and discovered that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by just 20% of the population. He investigated different industries and found that 80% of production typically came from just 20% of the companies. The generalization became:PROMOTED<img src="https://thumbor.forbes.com/thumbor/96x0/https%3A%2F%2Fblogs-images.forbes.com%2Fkevinkruse%2Ffiles%2F2016%2F03%2Fless-is-more-791109_1280_kaboompics-1013994-1200x800.jpg" alt="Photo: Pixabay/Kaboompics" width="334" height="223"><div class="caption" ng-class="caption_state" dir="ltr"> 
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 </div><img src="https://thumbor.forbes.com/thumbor/96x0/https%3A%2F%2Fspecials-images.forbesimg.com%2Fimageserve%2Fa8d190fc18198415b47fe0afcd3c1244%2F960x960.jpg%3Ffit%3Dscale%26background%3D000000" alt="uncaptioned" width="167" height="167">Pareto’s 80/20 RuleThis “universal truth” about the imbalance of inputs and outputs is what became known as the Pareto principle, or the 80/20 rule. While it doesn’t always come to be an exact 80/20 ratio, this imbalance is often seen in various business cases:• 20% of the sales reps generate 80% of total sales.• 20% of customers account for 80% of total profits.• 20% of the most reported software bugs cause 80% of software crashes.• 20% of patients account for 80% of healthcare spending (and 5% of patients account for a full 50% of all expenditures!)On a more personal note, you might be able to relate to my unintentional 80/20 habits.I own at least five amazing suits, but 80% of the time or more I grab my black, well-tailored, single-breasted Armani with a powder blue shirt. (Ladies, how many shoes do you own, and&nbsp;how often do you grab the same 20%?)I have 15 rooms in my house, but I spend about 80% of my time in just my bedroom, family room, and office (exactly 20%).I’m not sure how many miles of roads are in the small town where I live, but I bet I only drive on 20% or less of them, as I make daily trips to my kids’ schools, the grocery store, the bank and gas station.On my smartphone, I have 48 different mobile apps pinned to the tiles, but 80% of the time I’m only using the eight on my home screen.When I go grocery shopping, I definitely spend the most time in the aisles that are around the edges of the store: produce, the fish market, dairy, breads—and generally skip the aisles in the middle of the store (except for health and beauty).As a massive introvert, I don’t actually socialize too much, but when I do, 80% of my time is spent with the same 20% of my friends and family members.In my research into the productivity habits of high achievers, I interviewed hundreds of self-made millionaires, straight-A students and even Olympic athletes. For them, handling every task that gets thrown their way—or even every task that they would like to handle—is impossible. They use Pareto to help them determine what is of vital importance. Then, they delegate the rest, or simply let it go.How You Can Use ItSo how can you apply Pareto’s principle to gain more time in your life?Are you an executive? You’re surely faced with the constant challenge of limited resources. It’s not just your time you need to maximize, but your entire team’s. Instead of trying to do the impossible, a Pareto approach is to truly understand which projects are most important. What are the most important goals of your organization, or boss, and which specific tasks do you need to focus on to align with those goals. Delegate or drop the rest.Are you a freelancer? It’s important to identify your best (and highest-paying) clients. Of course, you don’t want all your eggs in one basket. But too much diversification will quickly lead to burnout. Focus on the money makers and strengthening those long-term relationships.No matter what your situation, it’s important to remember that there are only so many minutes in an hour, hours in a day, and days in a week. Pareto can help you to see this is a good thing; otherwise, you’d be a slave to a never-ending list of things to do.So, what 20% of your work drives 80% of your outcomes?--

What is the 80/20 Rule and could it actually make 80% of your work disappear?

Self-Improvement

What is the 80/20 Rule and could it actually make 80% of your work disappear?

If you’ve studied business or economics, you’re well familiar with the power of the Pareto Principle.

The Man Behind The Concept

Vilfredo Federico Damaso Pareto was born in Italy in 1848. He would go on to become an important philosopher and economist. Legend has it that one day he noticed that 20% of the pea plants in his garden generated 80% of the healthy pea pods. This observation caused him to think about uneven distribution. He thought about wealth and discovered that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by just 20% of the population. He investigated different industries and found that 80% of production typically came from just 20% of the companies. The generalization became:

PROMOTED

Photo: Pixabay/Kaboompics

Pareto’s 80/20 Rule

This “universal truth” about the imbalance of inputs and outputs is what became known as the Pareto principle, or the 80/20 rule. While it doesn’t always come to be an exact 80/20 ratio, this imbalance is often seen in various business cases:

• 20% of the sales reps generate 80% of total sales.

• 20% of customers account for 80% of total profits.

• 20% of the most reported software bugs cause 80% of software crashes.

• 20% of patients account for 80% of healthcare spending (and 5% of patients account for a full 50% of all expenditures!)

On a more personal note, you might be able to relate to my unintentional 80/20 habits.

I own at least five amazing suits, but 80% of the time or more I grab my black, well-tailored, single-breasted Armani with a powder blue shirt. (Ladies, how many shoes do you own, and how often do you grab the same 20%?)

I have 15 rooms in my house, but I spend about 80% of my time in just my bedroom, family room, and office (exactly 20%).

I’m not sure how many miles of roads are in the small town where I live, but I bet I only drive on 20% or less of them, as I make daily trips to my kids’ schools, the grocery store, the bank and gas station.

On my smartphone, I have 48 different mobile apps pinned to the tiles, but 80% of the time I’m only using the eight on my home screen.

When I go grocery shopping, I definitely spend the most time in the aisles that are around the edges of the store: produce, the fish market, dairy, breads—and generally skip the aisles in the middle of the store (except for health and beauty).

As a massive introvert, I don’t actually socialize too much, but when I do, 80% of my time is spent with the same 20% of my friends and family members.

In my research into the productivity habits of high achievers, I interviewed hundreds of self-made millionaires, straight-A students and even Olympic athletes. For them, handling every task that gets thrown their way—or even every task that they would like to handle—is impossible. They use Pareto to help them determine what is of vital importance. Then, they delegate the rest, or simply let it go.

How You Can Use It

So how can you apply Pareto’s principle to gain more time in your life?

Are you an executive? You’re surely faced with the constant challenge of limited resources. It’s not just your time you need to maximize, but your entire team’s. Instead of trying to do the impossible, a Pareto approach is to truly understand which projects are most important. What are the most important goals of your organization, or boss, and which specific tasks do you need to focus on to align with those goals. Delegate or drop the rest.

Are you a freelancer? It’s important to identify your best (and highest-paying) clients. Of course, you don’t want all your eggs in one basket. But too much diversification will quickly lead to burnout. Focus on the money makers and strengthening those long-term relationships.

No matter what your situation, it’s important to remember that there are only so many minutes in an hour, hours in a day, and days in a week. Pareto can help you to see this is a good thing; otherwise, you’d be a slave to a never-ending list of things to do.

So, what 20% of your work drives 80% of your outcomes?

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The 80/20 Rule And How It Can Change Your Life

the 80/20 rule- how can it change your life

IDEAS ABOUT

MORE LIKE THIS

The 80 20 Rule Explained (a.k.a. Pareto Principle) | Brian Tracy

How to 80/20 Your Life

80/20 - How to Increase Your Productivity by Doing Less | UBC Science

It's time to

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Bite-sized knowledgeto upgradeyour career

The 80/20 Rule And How It Can Change Your Life

the 80/20 rule- how can it change your life

IDEAS ABOUT

MORE LIKE THIS

The 80 20 Rule Explained (a.k.a. Pareto Principle) | Brian Tracy

How to 80/20 Your Life

80/20 - How to Increase Your Productivity by Doing Less | UBC Science

It's time to

READ

LIKE

A PRO!

Bite-sized knowledge
to upgrade
your career