A
Little Bit of Effort Makes a Big Difference
by Crystal Jonas
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Ever heard
of the Pareto Principal? You
may know it as the 80/20 Rule. Pareto,
an economist around the turn of the 20th
century, said that 80% of the land in Italy
was in the hands of 20% of the people.
Interestingly,
the 80/20 rule stands the test of
time. You know, for example, that
80% of the problems at work are
caused by 20% of the people, and
80% of the positive results that
happen in your life stem from 20%
of your efforts.
Here’s how to put the
80/20 Rule to work in your favor.
Think of all that you’d
really like to have in your life. Usually,
popular answers include: loving
relationships, great health, and
financial security.
Of all the activities you
do during the day, 20% are
getting you 80% of the way to
your desired results. In
other words, 20% of your effort
yields 80% of the results you’re
looking for. Sadly,
the other 80% of your work could
easily undo that progress you’ve
made.
Want an example? Say
you decide you’d really like to
be in better shape, since to
accomplish all of your goals, you
really need strong vibrant
health. You
spend 20% of your time to work
out, and plan your menu,
including buying healthful foods
and knowing how you’ll prepare
them.
You’ve
accomplished a great deal towards
meeting your goals, and it hasn’t
taken a great deal of time or
energy on your part. However,
if you’re not reinforcing the
best of the 20%, the 80% of your
time that goes by without purpose
can undo even great progress.
What can you do? Try
these 5 steps:
1) Be
clear on what you want.
2)
Be specific on what you need to
do to get it. (That’s
the 20% of effort that has such a high return in
the payoff.)
3) Be
aware of any bad habits you have
that might undo your progress.
4)
Be
prepared to replace the bad habit
with a supporting activity.
Experts tell us not to plan on
just eliminating the bad habit. As
you’ve heard before “nature
abhors a vacuum”. So put that
fact to work for yourself by
adapting a new habit that will
support that 20% of effort that
will take you exactly where you
want to be.
5)
Be
sure you do the 20% routinely.
Persistence is a greater
indicator of success than IQ.
Once
you notice that small amount of
effort that’s leading you to
such fantastic results, and when
you replace any activity that
unravels your progress –
amazing results will occur. So be
on the lookout for that 20% of
effort that’s so powerful in
propelling you to what you want.
Focus on and foster that 20%.You’ll
save tons of energy when you
experience for yourself how
little effort measurable results
actually take.
©2006 Copyright Crystal Jonas
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