The dummies guide to the Pareto Principle (80/20 rule) | Thriday (2024)

February 20, 2024

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The dummies guide to the Pareto Principle (80/20 rule) | Thriday (1)

by

Warren More

Productivity

The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 Rule, is a concept that has become common parlance in offices and startups worldwide. This rule suggests that 80% of effects come from 20% of causes. For example, 80% of a company's revenue may come from 20% of its customers, or 80% of a person's productivity may come from 20% of their work. This principle can be applied to many areas, including productivity for small business owners. This guide will explain how you can utilise it to get more time in your day.

The dummies guide to the Pareto Principle (80/20 rule) | Thriday (2)

Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto first introduced the Pareto Principle in 1895. Vilfredo was researching property ownership, and he discovered that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population. Pareto observed similar patterns in other areas, including wealth distribution and business success. Understanding the Pareto Principle can be highly beneficial for individuals and businesses, as it helps to identify and focus on the most critical areas of work or operation.

One way to use the Pareto Principle to improve productivity for small business owners is to focus on the 20% of tasks that will have the most significant impact. By identifying functions that are most important to the success of your business, you can give them the highest priority. For example, suppose you run a small retail store. In that case, the 20% of tasks that will have the most significant impact include developing a marketing plan, managing inventory, and providing excellent customer service.

Another way to use the Pareto Principle to improve productivity is to identify the 20% of activities that are wasting your time and eliminate them. This means finding the activities that are not contributing to your business goals and either eliminating them or delegating them to someone else. For example, 80% of customer complaints may come from 20% of customers. By identifying and addressing the concerns of these top 20% of customers, a company can improve overall customer satisfaction and retention rates.

How to implement the 80/20 rule

To implement the 80/20 rule, here are some steps you can take:

  • Start by identifying areas where the 80/20 rule can be implemented in your business. This could be in sales, customer service, time management, or personal productivity.
  • Once you have identified the 20% of tasks responsible for 80% of effects, prioritise them. These should be the areas that receive the most attention, resources, and effort.
  • Focus on optimising the 20% of causes to increase their impact. This could involve improving processes, streamlining operations, or investing in new technology or resources.
  • Regularly monitor the impact of the Pareto Principle and adjust accordingly. This could involve identifying new areas where the principle can be applied or refining the areas already in focus.
  • By following these steps, individuals and businesses can implement the Pareto Principle to prioritise the most critical areas of work or operation and increase efficiency, productivity, and success.

Thriday is a fantastic way also to implement the 80/20 rule. Most small businesses will identify that financial admin takes up a good portion of their work week. In fact, most small business owners spend over 6 hours a week on doing the books. With Thriday, you can automate all your banking, accounting and tax so that it only takes 30 minutes a week. You cansign up for Thriday todayto eliminate the time you waste on financial admin.

Pareto Principle FAQs

What is the Pareto Principle?

The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, is a principle that states that roughly 80% of effects come from 20% of causes.

Where did the Pareto Principle come from?

The Pareto Principle is named after Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who observed in 1906 that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population.

How is the Pareto Principle applied in business?

In business, the Pareto Principle is often used to identify the most profitable products or services, the most valuable customers, and the most important tasks to focus on.

Can the Pareto Principle be applied to personal life?

Yes, the Pareto Principle can be applied to personal life as well. For example, 80% of your happiness may come from 20% of your activities or relationships.

Is the Pareto Principle a universal law?

The Pareto Principle is not a universal law and may not always hold true in every situation. However, it is a valuable heuristic for identifying patterns and trends in data.

By focusing on the 20% of tasks that will have the most significant impact and eliminating the 20% of activities that are wasting your time, small business owners can use the Pareto Principle or 80/20 to improve their productivity and achieve their goals. Let us know how you go about implementing it, and we would love to hear your feedback.

DISCLAIMER: Team Thrive Pty Ltd ABN 15 637 676 496 (Thriday) is an authorised representative (No.1297601) of Regional Australia Bank ABN 21 087 650 360  AFSL 241167 (Regional Australia Bank). Regional Australia Bank is the issuer of the transaction account and debit card available through Thriday. Any information provided by Thriday is general in nature and does not take into account your personal situation. You should consider whether Thriday is appropriate for you.

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The dummies guide to the Pareto Principle (80/20 rule) | Thriday (2024)

FAQs

The dummies guide to the Pareto Principle (80/20 rule) | Thriday? ›

This rule suggests that 80% of effects come from 20% of causes. For example, 80% of a company's revenue may come from 20% of its customers, or 80% of a person's productivity may come from 20% of their work. This principle can be applied to many areas, including productivity for small business owners.

What is the 80-20 rule for dummies? ›

The 80/20 Rule: Understanding Why 20% of the Workforce Does 80% of the Work. There is a phenomenon that occurs in workplaces everywhere, known as the 80/20 rule, or the Pareto Principle, which suggests that roughly 20% of the workforce is responsible for accomplishing 80% of the work.

What is the Pareto principle 80-20 rule? ›

The Pareto principle states that for many outcomes, roughly 80% of consequences come from 20% of causes. In other words, a small percentage of causes have an outsized effect. This concept is important to understand because it can help you identify which initiatives to prioritize so you can make the most impact.

How do you use the 80-20 rule to manage time effectively? ›

When applied to work, it means that approximately 20 percent of your efforts produce 80 percent of the results. Learning to recognize and then focus on that 20 percent is the key to making the most effective use of your time. Here are two quick tips to develop 80/20 thinking: Take a good look at the people around you.

What does the Pareto Principle suggest 20% is to action as 80% is to? ›

The Pareto Principle is a concept that suggests that 80% of the end results of an action are due to 20% of causes. That's why this principle is also called the 80/20 rule.

What is the 80 20 perfect enough rule? ›

The basic idea is 80% of effects come from 20% of causes. So in theory if you focus 20% of resources correctly, you can get 80% of the results you need. You reach 'good enough' and can be much more cost-effective, instead of using 80% more resources stretching to a 'perfect' 100%.

How do you start the 80-20 rule? ›

Steps to apply the 80/20 Rule
  1. Identify all your daily/weekly tasks.
  2. Identify key tasks.
  3. What are the tasks that give you more return?
  4. Brainstorm how you can reduce or transfer the tasks that give you less return.
  5. Create a plan to do more that brings you more value.
  6. Use 80/20 to prioritize any project you're working on.
Mar 29, 2020

How do you visualize the 80-20 rule? ›

The Pareto chart is a visual representation of the 80-20 rule, featuring a bar + line chart. The bars represent the value of each item on your list (arranged in descending order), and the line indicates the cumulative percentage of those values.

What is Pareto 80-20 rule quotes? ›

The quote by the 80/20 principle, "Not all inputs are equal; some inputs are far more important and influential than others," emphasizes the significance of distinguishing between various inputs in any given situation.

What is the 80/20 rule quizlet? ›

The Pareto principle (also known as the 80-20 rule, the law of the vital few, and the principle of factor sparsity) states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. From a business vantage, "80% of your sales come from 20% of your clients".

What is an 80/20 checklist? ›

The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, states that "20% of your activities account for 80% of your results". If you have a to-do list with 10 items, 2 of them will turn out to be worth more than the other eight. Work isn't distributed equally, so you need to focus more on the things that matter most.

What is the most productive way to apply the 80 20 rule? ›

Examples of the Pareto Principle

In business, for instance, this means 80% of your profits come from 20% of your sales. So, it would help if you focus your energy on those clients who make up the 20% of your highest sales.

What is the 80/20 rule in simple terms? ›

The 80-20 rule is a principle that states 80% of all outcomes are derived from 20% of causes. It's used to determine the factors (typically, in a business situation) that are most responsible for success and then focus on them to improve results.

How do you use the 80 20 rule in a Pareto chart? ›

According to the Pareto Principle, in any group of things that contribute to a common effect, a relatively few contributors account for the majority of the effect. Commonly, it is found that: 80% of complaints come from 20% of customers. 80% of sales come from 20% of clients.

How do you calculate Pareto 80 20? ›

If 80% of 80% of business comes from 20% of the 20% of the customers, it's (0.80 x 0.80) / (0.20 x 0.20). This means that 64% of business comes from 4% of the customers. That is 80/20 squared or (80/20)2.

What is the 80-20 rule real examples? ›

80% of your weekly tasks affect 20% of your future. 80% of grief is caused by 20% of people in your life. 80% of alarms will be set off by 20% of potential causes. 80% of the energy in a combustion engine produces 20% output.

What is the 80/20 rule diet example? ›

If you're aiming for 80 percent of your diet to come from fresh and unprocessed whole foods, why not treat yourself with up to 20 percent of your favorite treats? For someone targeting 1500 calories a day that means you'd use about 1200 calories for healthy, nutritious meals and 300 calories for your treat.

How does the 80-20 rule work with money? ›

The 80/20 budget is a simpler version of it. Using the 80/20 budgeting method, 80% of your income goes toward monthly expenses and spending, while the other 20% goes toward savings and investments.

What is the 80-20 rule in strategy? ›

The 80-20 rule is a principle that states 80% of all outcomes are derived from 20% of causes. It's used to determine the factors (typically, in a business situation) that are most responsible for success and then focus on them to improve results.

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