I came across an article talking about the 80-20 rule recently and it caught my attention. I had seen it before, but I didn’t’ really think much about it. Basically, the principle says that about 80% of the outcomes of an actions comes from 20% of your inputs. One of the striking examples is that the top 20% of the population owns 80% of the population’s wealth, and the more obvious 20% of your customers contribute 80% of your revenue. On a less macro level, it basically translates to: 20% of the activities we partake in is contributing towards 80% of our accomplishments.
That got me thinking: am I stretching myself out to thin? I’m constantly running around, attending seminars and info sessions to learn as much as I can. But even if I do learn this stuff, is it even worth it? There’s a very good chance the stuff I’m learning will never be of any use to me. So does that mean I should erase all that stuff from my schedule and focus on my 20% even if I actually enjoy it? Or maybe this is my 20%…
This is my new dilemma. I’ve spent the past few days thinking a lot about this, trying to find that 20 that is my real passion. I feel like with the internet making information so accessible, it’s so hard to just focus on one thing. A good amount of my day is spent reading the news, from financial news to tech new to even politics. I like having that knowledge and understanding of what’s going on in the world, but to what avail? Being surrounded, bombarded even, by all these sources of information is really overwhelming at times, and maybe it’s time to start streamlining these sources. The world is so fast paced now that it’s hard to slow things down and grasp the few really meaningful things.
Here’s a great article about the 80-20 rule I found after learning about it: What Is The 80/20 Rule And Why It Will Change Your Life
Anyway, my question to the few of you who read this: if you were to live life by the 80/20 principle, what would be your 20?
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The end of the article I linked to above concluded by talking about fear and how fear restrains people from really doing great things.
The biggest factor that stops most people from chasing their dreams and working towards their real goals is fear.
[Snip]
Don’t let fear be the reason for not achieving your goals. Stop, reassess your real passions, remove the money equation long enough so you can think without worrying about finances, and make plans to move towards your 80/20 lifestyle activities. Maximize what you are good at. Find the activities that produce the most results for you and your business and put your energy where the big rewards are.
Not that I didn’t know this already, but reading that quote made me realize that if anything, my downfall is going to come from not being able to delve into uncertainty. I like it when everything just goes according to plan. I set a goal. I figure out a path. Work my way down that path. Reach goal. But I’m starting to understand that hard work is only going to contribute so much towards making that happen. At points, I’m going to have to start deviating from that path because of some obstacle, and I need to get rid of the self-imposed wall keeping me on the path rather than try to shove my way through the obstacle.
It makes me nervous, but as my goals get greater and more involved, it’s probably the way I have to go.
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I should go to one of those self-improvement classes. There are so many things wrong with the way I look at life and people. It could probably do me some good.
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I wish I was more creative. It’s hard to be innovative when I lack creativity. And it’d be really nice if I could come up with some innovative ideas right now. New ways to tackle an old problem.
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