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Productivity Hack: Get More Done with Less Effort

Want to shake off the winter doldrums and ๐ŸŽ‡ reignite ๐ŸŽ‡ your productivity? Read on to learn what happens when we harness the powerful Pareto Principle to manage our time. ๐Ÿ•ฐ

According to the Pareto Principle, approximately 20 percent of our 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 our time.

For example, Iโ€™ll share a real-life issue.

Problem: I need visually appealing workbooks to accompany my day-long presentations. My strengths are well-suited to knowing what these workbooks should look like. However, it is time-consuming and not engaging for me to create the actual workbook. Left to my own devices, the workbook task is a long and tiresome work chore. Sadly, I put in WAY more than 20% of my effort to get a workbook that meets my expectations.

Solution: After a long search, I found a highly capable assistant, Brittany. Now Brittany โ€“ who is super speedy and skilled at presentation creation โ€“ oversees this task.

Get it โ“

Using the Pareto Principle and our strengths as a guide, we can analyze where our time is well-spent or futilely expended.

Ultimately, a redistribution of our time and effort will allow us to achieve great success with the least possible effort. Here are some other perks:

๐‹๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐’๐ญ๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ. When we spend time working on tasks that donโ€™t benefit us (or our business), we feel overwhelmed ๐Ÿ˜ฅ, frustrated ๐Ÿ˜  , and burned-out ๐Ÿ˜ฉ . Applying the 80/20 rule allows us to focus on the tasks that align with our strengths and have a real impact on our success. This is a sure-fire antidote to beat stress!

๐‡๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ž๐ซ ๐‹๐ž๐ฏ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐„๐ง๐ ๐š๐ ๐ž๐ฆ๐ž๐ง๐ญ. Spending time and energy on tasks that arenโ€™t beneficial to us can also make us feel bored, frustrated, and disengaged at work. When we apply the 80/20 rule to our work, we spend more time on the tasks that really matter and that make us feel competent, which can lead to higher engagement at work.

๐Œ๐จ๐ซ๐ž ๐“๐ข๐ฆ๐ž. Clearly, the Pareto Principle allows us to get more done with less effort. This frees up more time and energy to follow our dreams outside of work.

๐Œ๐ž๐š๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐Ÿ๐ฎ๐ฅ ๐๐š๐ซ๐ญ๐ง๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ๐ก๐ข๐ฉ๐ฌ. When we rely on others to help us achieve important goals, we create meaningful and fulfilling partnerships. These partnerships in-turn positively impact our work productivity and life satisfaction.  

๐™๐™–๐™ ๐™š-๐˜ผ๐™ฌ๐™–๐™ฎ ๐™๐™ž๐™ฅ๐™จ
1๏ธโƒฃ Create a list of the most important outcomes for you!
2๏ธโƒฃ Are you pouring time, effort, and energy into outcomes that do not reward you? If so, refocus your energy on the most impactful outcomes.
3๏ธโƒฃ Consider partnering with someone who is especially talented in areas where you are frustrated or disengaged and then reciprocate. Help them in an area where you naturally soar!
4๏ธโƒฃ Let me know how it goes! โœ

Here’s to a productive, engaging, and partner-focused ๐ŸŒท spring ๐ŸŒท!

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