Using the Pareto Principle to Achieve Your Life Goals.
What does a 19th-century Italian economist have to do with how you set your goals?
Efficiency.
As I continue studying for my Six Sigma Green Belt Certification, I keep coming back to thinking about how many of the principles I am learning about can be used in real estate and my life, in general. The Pareto Principle specifically comes to mind, which is the 80/20 rule. I learned about this method during my MBA program but studying it over and over now makes me realize how much influence it has.
The “Pareto Principle” named after its founder, the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto. He noticed that people in society seemed to divide naturally into what he called the “vital few,” or the top 20% in terms of money and influence, and the “trivial many,” or the bottom 80%. According to this principle: 20% of your activities will account for 80% of your results. Let me write that again, 20% of the things you do lead to REAL change and improvement, and the other 80% is often just time misused on “busy work.” This can change the way you prioritize goals forever.
But how do we let go of what feels urgent… and instead create room for what is actually important? The first step is to get a clear picture of what is important. This will help you avoid answering that text or email right away. With our priorities defined, the second step is to pause and ask ourselves, can this urgent task wait? Would acting on this task serve my deeper priorities? It’s difficult to create a mind shift but with discipline, we can take back our time.
“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.”
When we work on our top priorities, we can use our resources wisely. The 80/20 rule helps you sift through and find the most important tasks to get done first, whatever situation you are in. It’s great for time management, great for managing your priorities, and one of the most important skills you’ll ever learn. It is important to remember that the tasks that make it to the top of your list are also going to seem as the most difficult or complicated. But the returns or payoffs of these very tasks are remarkable.
The simple truth is:
Attack the toughest tasks first. Prioritize which tasks are most important (those are the ones that will make you successful).
Think about which tasks will give you the biggest payoff and accomplish the most. Fight against the temptation to start on the easy, less valuable things. It will be worth it in the long term.
You decide which tasks you do, so train yourself to do the tasks that will help you conquer your goals. Try to break the habit of leaving the more difficult tasks for the end of the day. Most people start to shut down their mental “work day” and then tell themselves they will get to it tomorrow.
This principle should be used to refocus your priorities when needed and to help you remove inefficient activities and habits from your life. The Pareto Principle helps you to identify the channels that are working, and most importantly, those that aren’t. Instead of burning yourself out, look for ways to do things more efficiently. Not having clear goals makes it hard to focus well on your priorities at hand. Applying the 80/20 rule will lift that mental clutter and enable you to focus better on your priorities.
What habits have you formed to help you become more efficient?
Rest. Adventure on.
