The 20/80 Principle of Unequal Distributin

In 1906, Italian economist Vilfredo Praeto discovered an interesting concept that has become known as Praeto’s Law. He observed that twenty percent of Italy’s population accounted for eighty percent of the country’s wealth. From this he created a mathematical formula to describe predictable unequal distribution.

This 20/80 Principle can be a very effective management tool. Praeto’s Law states that 80% of results come from 20% of effort. Imagine that!

In other (more) words:

Twenty percent of - work, tasks, contacts, exertion, duties, responsibilities, phone calls, dealings, networking, goal setting, effort, struggles, meetings, undertakings

Produce eighty percent of – results, income, productivity, notoriety, wealth, accomplishment, meaning, importance, worth, significance

And it’s predictable.
· 20% of the committee members do 80% of the work
· 20% of employees account for 80% of the companies productivity

Think about your closet crammed full of clothing. Out of 100% of the garments you own, 20% of them will be worn 80% of the time.

The same is true of other accumulations both at work and at home. Of all the tools one has - garage or garden instruments, kitchen appliances – 20% of the items are employed to complete 80% of the chores. Of all of the bulging files and mounds of papers or magazines, 20% of the articles account for 80% of interest/relevance.
And it’s unbalanced.

Picture 100% of the above mentioned items. If (predictably) only 20% are used, by default what does the other 80% become? Clutter? Junk? Time wasters? Space takers? Dust collectors? Maybe it’s time to reduce, reuse, recycle.

It’s predictable. Check your own accounting. How are you unequally distributing your efforts? Here are suggestions for putting the biggest bang into your 20% of effort.

· “Do first things first.” Steven Covey
· Shorten work time by limiting tasks to the important
· Identify time wasters and eliminate, delegate or simplify
· Use one time management system only. Massage until it fits and stay with it.
· Review goals daily, weekly, monthly and adjust accordingly
· Keep running lists of “to do’s”, liberally mark off and cautiously add to
· Do it or dump it. Refuse to keep unfinished tasks in your energy field.
· Meditate. Spend time in the secret place and become wholly integrated.

How have you found the 20/80 principle predictable?

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