The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, helps one understand the power of prioritizing your efforts against the value received. The 80/20 rule says that 80% of your success and results come from 20% of your effort. If one were to focus on those activities that produce the most value (the 20%), they would be more effective.
The 80/20 Rule & Management
If you understand the power of the 80/20 rule, you can become a more impactful and effective manager. Even if the ratio isn’t exactly 80/20, it can be close, teaching you some valuable lessons. Using the 80/20 rule, you can improve performance dramatically by shifting what you prioritize. Check-in with yourself whether any of the following statements might true in your organization. You might be surprised how many of these might be correct.
- 80% of your revenue comes from 20% of your products or services
- 20% of your products drive 80% of your customer support interactions.
- 80% of your sales revenue probably comes from close to 20% of your top customers.
- 20% of your salespeople probably drive 80% of your overall sales.
- 80% of your stress comes from 20% of your direct reports.
- 20% of your emails are valuable, whereas 80% is waste, clogging up your inbox.
- 80% of a meeting could be covered in 20% of the time.
- 20% of your week, yields 80% of your productivity and performance.
- 80% of your success comes from 20% of your time and effort.
Leveraging The 80/20 Rule
For me, happiness equals success. I recommend figuring out whether 20% of activities lead to 80% of your unhappiness and ineffectiveness and cut them out of your life. Whether that’s through delegating or simply stopping the activity, get it off your plate. On the reverse, identify the 20% of your work that results in 80% of your happiness. That’s where you need to invest your time and effort. Embrace the 80/20 rule.
Final Thought
The 80/20 rule can apply to almost anything, so leverage it to determine where you should prioritize your time, effort, and energy. Evolving your skills means you have a great sense of where to focus on energy, choosing yourself and the team’s right priorities. With the 80/20 rule regularly used, you can take your team’s performance to the next level.
