Professor on July 20th, 2008
Don’t know this principle? It is the modern day government of life. It describes many events including economics.
Vifredo Pareto an Italian philosopher who observed that 80 percent of Italy’s wealth and money was controlled by 20 percent of the population. It was a revelation of its time and of course very controversial.
Later Joseph M Juran came along and developed the idea even more, giving credit to Pareto and applying it to many things.
For us we will apply it to our success and prosperity. I will state it as this,
“80% of your success will come from 20% of the work.”
So what 20% is important? It depends, but it usually is the last 20%. 80% of your effort in achieving anything that you want for success will be used to get to the 20% that will actually make you successful.
So we have said before to be patient, don’t give up, and be persistent. It will take a lot of work with seemingly no payoff. If you quit before it happens then you will be disappointed. If you wait until you reach the 20% that will push you over the top then you will feel such a sense of accomplishment that you will be overjoyed.
The reason I wanted to make you aware of this rule is what Bill Gates said on Oprah a few years ago. He said that the gap between the rich and the poor is widening, and the middle class is beginning to die out. Since then there have been many economists who have also came to this conclusion. It is a scary fact that once you begin to see the signs it is obvious.
I believe that this rule has already changed to the 90/10 rule in the United States (90% of the people control 10% of the money). It will soon become the 95/5 rule unless we do something about it.
Besides wealth there seems to be a sense of entitlement for many people. They expect to be healthy eating McDonalds. They expect to find the perfect mate the first time the fall in love. They expect to be wealthy with little or no effort. The Gap is widening.
The only way to get to the 10% is to give effort. Look around you. How many people look healthy to you. Look around and see how many people struggle to pay bills. Look around and see how many people are unhappy in their relationships. 80%? 90%? 95%?
Do you want to be a 90%er or a 10%er? What is the difference? Effort, persistents, never give up attitude, and above all a willingness to learn for a lifetime. Do you have what it takes. There is no special gene, no extra brain power, anyone and everyone can do it. But it takes effort. Successful people. The 10%ers did not get there doing nothing.
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Professor on June 24th, 2008
Are you a victim of laziness, a root cause of procrastination? Do you often suffer because of what you initially considered as easy has turned difficult with the loss of time, and what appeared hard, due to further delay, has become impossible now? You may draw comfort from the fact that you are in the company of many that are affected by procrastination. But you must realize that you will experience true comfort, if you get rid of your laziness by shaking yourself up into action. Like many others, you can indeed stop procrastinating and start meeting deadlines, by following a few simple steps that teach you effective time management.
1. Plan your daily must-do activities. Draw up a to-do list; preferably, write it down on paper; or, use a computer if you prefer.
2. Prioritize the activities, the more important ones taking precedence over the less important. If there are urgent things to do, but not important enough to be worried about if not done, put them below the important ones. The idea is based on the established principle that 80% of rewards accrue from 20% of effort directed towards accomplishing important work.
3. Estimate the time required for each of the listed activities after analyzing their complexity. Avoid underestimation, as you may not have enough time to do well a particular of piece of work. Similarly, avoid overestimation, for that may leave some activities without enough time. A realistic budgeting of time is a must. Time allocation is a skill that is acquired with experience. So keep reviewing and revising your time schedule as you progress.
4. Organize your life. That will help you avoid wasting your precious time and leave more time for the actual work. Remember indiscipline causes confusion, even chaos, in life. It eats into your time. Avoid sloppiness. For instance, leave your personal belongings of daily use, like your glasses, your clothing, your computer etc., in the same place. If you do, you won’t need to spend time looking for them all over the place. Apply the principle of doing work first and then taking time for pleasure and relaxation. Reverse the order only at the pain of falling prey to procrastination. You can get time for rest and relaxation if you are efficient in doing your assigned work.
5. Start working bit by bit. You may see a mountain at first, but mountains can be moved, especially if you begin by moving just a small stone from it. You know you cannot move the entire mountain all at once. Do not be overwhelmed by the immensity of the task before you. That will put you off. And you will put off the task for another day, which will never come. Just begin by taking one small step and you will invariably reach your destination.
6. Put first things first early in the day. Remember procrastination grows into a habit by the minute. Begin your day by launching yourself head first into the most important job waiting to be done.
7. Learn to cope with anxiety, depression, stress and other similar conditions of the mind related to your problems in life. Keep yourself fit, not just physically but mentally as well. Learn and practice suitable mental relaxation techniques such as meditation.
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