7/27/2019 Achieve More With Less in Life Using 8020 Principle

1/2

Achieve More With Less In Life Using 80/20 Principle

Conventional wisdom is not to put all of your eggs in one basket. 80/20 wisdom isto choose a basket carefully, load all your eggs into it, and then watch it like a hawk. Richard Koch, The 80/20 PrincipleToday, I am going to share with you the power of applying the 80/20 principle toyour life. Even though I initially applied it at work, I have come to witness its presence in virtually all aspects of life (relationships, goal achievement, emotions, time management, etc) and how much value it can bring to all of us through itsapplication.So, what is the 80/20 Principle?Imagine you are the CEO of a company and you have a sales force of 100 people. In a world where everything is equal and the same, you will naturally assume thateach person contributes to your sales proportionately; i.e. 20% of the employees contribute to 20% ofthe sales, 50% contribute to 50% sales, and so on.However, what if instead of a 1-1 relationship, you found out 80% of your salesis actually contributed by 20% of your staff ?What the 80-20 Principle Is AboutThis is what the 80/20 rule is about itsays that 80% of the effects in situations are from 20% of the causes . This was first discovered by Pareto, an Italian Economist who foundthat 20% of people in Italy controls 80% of the wealth and land. 80/20 is also known as the Pareto Principle or Principle of Least Effort.Examples of 80/20 Principle in ActionBelow are just a few of the tens of thousands of examples where 80/20 principle

can be observed:*. Population: 80% (25.8 million out of32.3 million) of the population in England is contributed by 20% (53 out of 263) of its cities*. Resource Consumption: 70% of the worlds energy, 75% of its metals, and 85% ofits timber are consumed by 20% of the worlds countries (with far fewer than 20 percent of the worlds population)*. Natural Resources: 80% of Earths mineral wealth is produced by far less than 20% of the Earths surface*. Wealth: 85% of the total global assets is accounted for by 10% of adults ( Source: Guardian )*. Crimes: 80% of crimes is committed by 20% of the criminals*. Books: 80% of the value in a book can be gleaned from 20% of its content*. Accidents: Majority of road accidentsis by 20% of the motorists

*. Clothes: Majority of the times you wear 20% of the clothes in your wardrobe*. Divorces: Majority of the divorces is by 20% of married individuals*. Weather: 80% of the rain is by fewer than 20% of clouds*. Consumption: Majority of the worlds consumption is on a small portion of the products (think Coca Cola, Microsoft, Ipod, etc)*. Daily Life: Majority of the times you eat out, you dine at the same 20% of the restaurants you know*. Smoking: Majority of the cigarette consumption is by 20% of the smokers (areyou one of them?)*. Relationships: 80% of the value you get from relationships is from 20% of thepeople you know*. Goal achievement: 80% of the effects and value you get in goal pursuit will be from 20% of the things you did (the key pillars of success)

.And the list goes on.Applying 80/20 Principle into Our LifeHowever, people have quickly found the ubiquity of this law to practically all aspects of our life. Today, the rule has come to represent that a large majorityof effects are due to a small portion of causes , rather than specific emphasison 80/20 equation. 80/20 is really synonymous with two themes, which Richard Koch shared in Living the 80/20 Way as well:1. Focus: Understanding that Less is More80/20 is about being able to see the big picture, identifying the 20% activitiesthat truly matters and focusing on them . Focusing on the 20% activities that a

7/27/2019 Achieve More With Less in Life Using 8020 Principle

2/2

re most important lets you achieve more out of your life, rather than focusing your energy on everything thus, Less is More . This is the same as being effectiv which I shared in Become the Master of Your Time .Some aspects of Less is More include: How can you remove the tasks that donot contribute as much to the situation? How can you reduce your energy in activities that do not bring you as much value? How can you focusyour attention instead to cultivate and expand upon activities which make you happier, better off, more abundant (not just in financial terms)?2. Progress: Achieving More with LessThe current mentality of our society is a More with More mindset. Everyday, we straddle ourselves across multiple responsibilities, thinking that it is all for the better good. We stretch ourselves to fit all the demands that come in from allsides of our life. But are we really getting more results by putting inmore effort? Or is it the same or even less results? At the end of the day, we end up becoming more hagged, more jaded, more disillusioned. Our health wanes, our sociallife suffers, and all additional money we earn goes into more bills and loans.For the investmentof energy we are putting in, we do notseem to be quite well receiving the equivalent level of fulfillment in return.80/20 allows you to get the most outof living . When you scale back on theactivities that are not important, you end up getting more energy which youcan investback in whats important. When you cut away tasks that are zapping your time withno seeming return, you have more time for what matters to you.In the end, 80/20 allows you to achieve more results, with less energy . It gives you extraordinary results with little action . With 80/20, we can achieve more

with less. In the next part, we will discuss the 6 common misconceptions peoplehave on the 80/20 principle and why why you should not resist the principle.