As a business owner and entrepreneur, I am constantly trying to find ways to become more efficient, manage my time more wisely, and get more done in one hour than I ever thought possible. It wasn’t until I came across the 80-20 rule that I was able to truly embrace the concept of efficiency.
Did you realize that 80% of your results are achieved by 20% of your efforts? Or another way to look at it is that 80% of your income is generated by 20% of your activity or 80% of your income is generated by 20% of your clients! For some business professionals, this is when they start to look at their business and say: "Wow! If 20% of my clients are generating 80% of my income, I need to take a serious look and who and where I’m spending my time.”
Now, although only 20% of your efforts result in 80% of your results, that doesn’t mean that you can just stop doing the other 80% of your efforts altogether. We all know that there are certain things – non-money-making things – that one must do in order to continue to be successful. So here’s where the good news comes in – focus on the 20% that matters and outsource the rest.
Outsourcing is a great concept. It allows people to increase their productivity by freeing up tons of time that they were spending doing tasks like appointment setting, booking travel, online ordering, updating databases, booking speaking engagements, planning events, updating frequent flier miles, reconciling sales figures, staying on top of social media accounts, proofreading, SEO, paperwork, marketing, and the list goes on and on. Look at your to-do list, how much of that could you outsource? Once you are able to outsource the bulk of your tasks you’ve just opened up your world to allow more income to pour in.
There are books, magazine articles, and posts on this concept. You can apply the 80-20 rule to business, your health, your personal life – anything you like. Start working smarter today to live the lifestyle you want. Maybe your dreams aren’t about building a bigger business or making more money. Maybe your dreams include working less and enjoying a lifestyle where your passions exceed your possessions. In any case, the rule of 80-20 can help you become successful – whatever your definition of success is. And by applying the 80-20 rule you can achieve your success today!
- Danae
Danae Branson is the Founder of Elite Scheduling Services. Elite specializes in appointment-setting services for financial and real estate professionals.