The Pareto Principle – Work & Productivity

For my final article on The Pareto Principle, I’m going to be talking about applying it where it’s most relevant in my opinion. The Pareto Principle is a powerful tool we can use to enhance our work life and boost productivity. As a business owner who didn’t really have a lot of experience to draw upon, I looked to as many books and blogs as I could, to learn how to best optimize my time and be the most productive I could possibly be. The following is a collection of the best tips I have so without further ado, let’s begin –

1. Focus on the Big things first

When I first started out working in my company, I used to keep a checklist of stuff that I needed to do. Then I’d slowly start ticking away stuff as I got things done. The problem with this approach? I started avoiding the stuff that was complex and actually mattered and just kept finishing off tinier irrelevant tasks.

It didn’t help either that these were tasks that I could easily delegate. So, what’s the solution? Prioritize the list.

Suppose you have a list of 10 things you want to accomplish. Rank them in order of importance. Now pick the top 3 and focus on them. This will also show you what actually matters and what doesn’t. The stuff that ranks near the bottom of the list? Delegate it.

Slowly but surely, you’ll see your daily list shrinking and eventually you’ll learn how to choose your tasks wisely for the day.

2. Focus on One thing at a time

People in our society really tend to fetishize the idea of being a multitasker. They love bragging about how they can multitask and get a lot of crap done in a short amount of time.

This is what really happens. These people do crappy work real fast and then pat themselves on the back for doing a lot of sub-par work so quickly.

Focus on one thing instead. Quality > Quantity.

Pick one thing and do it well. I used to often try doing multiple things really quickly in an effort to feel super productive. This never worked out for me. While I felt great in the short term, the quality of my work suffered in the long term. I often felt productive but never actually was.

In your work and everything else, always remember,

long term results > short term gratification. ALWAYS.

3. Delegate!

A lot of people, my co-workers included have problems delegating their responsibilities. This often reminds me of the old saying “If you want something done right, you’ve gotta do it yourself.”

I believe this to be false. Just because something is old, doesn’t mean it’s right. Just look at religion.

Using the above method of prioritizing your tasks, I highly recommend you delegate the tasks that are low priority. Also, understand this. This is key. If somebody does something about 80% as well as you, that’s good enough. You will almost never find somebody who will do an assigned task at the same level of quality or efficiency as you. 80% of you is still pretty damn good though and I suggest you embrace it and move on. This will free up your time and make sure you’re productivity isn’t stagnating. Use your team to boost your productivity so that all of you may get stuff done quicker.

Also, I highly, highly recommend using Asana. It allows me and my employees to keep track of tasks together and it also allows us to keep each other accountable. I let my employees assign me tasks and vice-versa. This makes sure that we’re all getting our time-sensitive tasks done on time. It’s hands down the best delegating tool that I’ve found online.

4. Use a Calendar!

As one of my favorite authors on finance, Ramit Sethi says “If it’s not on your calendar, it doesn’t exist.” I highly highly recommend using a calendar and planning your day out each and every day.

Below is an example of what my calendar looks like for a particular day. Organizing my day like this keep me on a schedule and makes sure my productivity doesn’t stagnate.

Notice that each event is color-coded for what part of my life it occupies. Red and yellow are two separate companies that I run while blue is personal. At the very top are all also important reminders for things that may be time sensitive or something that may be coming due like a credit card payment.

You don’t have to structure your calendar exactly like mine. Hell, even I don’t use the same structure every day. Some days I’ll have long 2-hour blocks dedicated to just one task. Use what works best for you.

5. Get to the point

Usually, when I get calls from sales reps, I don’t really give them a lot of time. I’m never usually rude to them but I tell them very early on that I’m –

a. Not interested.

b. Not interested in the long spiel.

The first one is pretty cut and dry. The second one though is usually what I use when I’m actually interested but I would just rather have them get to the point.

Also, I don’t say it exactly like that. For example, What I would say if I was actually interested was, “Listen, Joe, I really really appreciate the effort you’re putting in and I really appreciate the call. What I really want to know though is the price that you’re offering this to me and the timeframe within which we can move forward on this if we come to an agreement on price.”

This is insanely powerful. This does multiple things –

a. This gets to what’s actually important. The stuff you’re actually interested in.

b. This sends the message that your time is valuable and is not to be wasted.

c. This also sets the tone for any future conversation you may have. Whoever you’re talking to will know that you’re a person who likes it when things are quick and efficient.

Getting an answer quickly will always make sure your time is being used in alignment with your productivity goals.

If you have any questions or have any productivity tips or tricks of your own, feel free to leave them in the comments below. Also, check out my other articles on using the Pareto Principle in other aspects of your life. I talk about using it in Relationships and in Health & Fitness!