Time management - use the Pareto Principle to prioritise your priorities  

 
Time is often what we want more of, yet it is often the thing that slips through our fingers the quickest. We are often told that time is money. Customers seem to want things yesterday. Our bosses often want more from less. 

So how do we cope? When everything seems to be a priority how do we prioritise what needs to be done first? This blog article answers this question, by applying the Pareto Principle to time management.
 

First of all, what is the Pareto Principle?

This is a way of thinking that is attributed to Vilfredo Pareto. He was a polymath who trained in mathematics and physics and lived from 15 July 1848 to 19 August 1923. He introduced the concept of 80:20 thinking in terms of wealth distribution, claiming that 80% of the world’s wealth is owned by 20% of the world’s population.

Since then, using the Pareto Principle has been adopted in business and in many other walks of life.
 
Here are some examples:

• You may wear 20% of the clothes that you have in your wardrobe 80% of the time.
• Perhaps you use 20% of the available programmes on your washing machine 80% of the time.
• Maybe 20% of your customers provide you with 80% if your company's revenue.
• Or 20% of your team members give you 80% of your problems.

I could go on. Or maybe you can think of your own examples.

But it’s important to remember that the Pareto Principle is a rule of thumb rather than being an exact science. It’s a way of thinking about things and offers an approach to take. The Pareto Principle is widely used amongst our manufacturing clients when problem solving and by our retail clients when analysing customer behaviours.
 

So how can the Pareto Principle be applied to time management and prioritisation?

 
Imagine that you have 100 tasks to complete. Now ask yourself, ‘Where will I begin?’ Well, one option would be to start at the top of your to do list and work your way down, perhaps in a chronological order, using the method of 'first come, first served'. But how would this deal with each task’s level of urgency and importance?
 
By using the Pareto Principle, you can decide where to begin by asking yourself this question, “Which 20% of the tasks that I need to complete will give me 80% of the impact that I need?’.  Or even, ‘What 20% of effort will give me 80% outcome?’
 
This focus will enable you to prioritise the things that are the most important whilst avoiding the minutiae that you may enjoy doing as a distraction. Remember, being busy is not always the same as being productive - they can be very different things.  
 
Of course, you may need to agree your priority list with your manager, just to check-in and get them onside with your thinking. However, the Pareto Principle offers a clear way of deciding where to shine your torch so that you get done what really matters, i.e. the things that you will be judged on.
 
Try it. What have you to lose? You have valuable time to gain. 
 
Paul Beesley
Director and senior consultant, Beyond Theory
 
Other related blog articles:
 
Procrastination - two reasons why we do this and two tips on how to stop
Time management tips - being busy is not the same as being productive
Delegating work is not the same allocating work
Time management means getting your priorities right