Must-reads
- The 80/20 Principle: The Secret to Success by Achieving More with Less by Richard Koch
In most endeavours a large portion of the results come from a small amount of effort. To get the full score and fill in the last pieces takes the most amount of effort. This is called the Pareto principle, or the 80/20 rule, where 80% of the results come from 20% of the investment. This principle can be used as a rule of thumb in many situations. Sometimes it’s more of a 90/10 principle or 70/30 principle or even 99/1 principle. The main gist of the principle is that a respectable amount of results comes from little work.
This principle has to do with your level of Enough. It is unrealistic to go for 100% results all the time in every aspect of your life. Where you place your Enough decides whether you can use the Pareto principle to get most of your results for minimal effort. The bulk of work can be quickly done and will likely satisfy a realistic Enough. Are the details and the last miles really worth many times the work you still have to put in compared to the work you’ve already done. Or is the 80% score enough, especially considering it only cost you 20% of your effort.
The Pareto principle isn’t applicable to tasks that require meticulousness. In these tasks you need to fill in those last pieces, you have to pay attention to detail. If this is truly the case, ignore the Pareto principle and be scrupulous. Be honest in your evaluation: completeness, attention to detail and perfection is often not needed. Finish these projects to the 80% level with 20% of your time. Save your energy for the tasks that do require this level of precision and completion.