Some people refer to it as the 80/20 rule; others call it the law of the vital few, while the principle of factor sparsity is the term given to it by others. However, it is generally referred to as the pareto principle.

How did this principle come to be? Vilfredo Federico Damaso Pareto was the name of an Italian man, born in 1848 and was widely known as a philosopher cum economist. One day, he observed that only 20% of the pea plant in his garden generated 80% of the healthy pea pods and this kick-started a thought process in him. He continued his thought and realized that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by just 20% of the population and that 80% of production typically came from just 20% of the companies. Thus, he concluded that most things in life are not distributed evenly and  these generalizations were given:

• 80% of results will come from just 20% of the actions
• 80% of all consequences come from only 20% of causes.
• 80% of your results come from only 20% of your effort and time.
• 80% of your company’s profits come from only 20% of the products and customers.

In simple terms, Eighty percent of what we do is NOT necessary as only Twenty percent of our efforts yield 80% of the results. Hence, it is important that we devote our efforts, so as to increase our productivity and performance.

I could also deduce from the principle that most of the time, only 20 % of people seems to drive most organisations and the remaining 80% are technically redundant. The question is, are you a part of the ‘useful’ 20% or you’re part of the 80 % who are doing next to nothing and are neither making a difference nor making an impact?

Friends, a Pareto approach helps you understand which goals and projects are most important for you, your endeavours and organisation. It helps you determine the specific tasks needed to focus on, towards  making a success out of your endeavours and  life. It also helps you delegate or delete activities where and when necessary.

I believe if we would use this approach always, we can eliminate the stressors and reduce the stress that weighs us down and increases inefficiency.  

So, what 20% of your work drives 80% of your outcomes? If you can identify the 20% that creates the rewards, you can spend more time doing those things to create greater rewards. You can also cut back, a lot, on the 80% of the time you waste creating only 20% of the rewards.

Friends, be reminded that your success in life is assured if you obey simple principles. I am ADEYEMI, Raphael Oluwamayowa, I write, I Research, I Proofread and I urge you to do all you should, so we meet at the topmost top. © #SYNERGY# 2018.

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