The Pareto Principle Appears Again

Most all of us have heard of the Pareto Principle or the "Law of the Vital Few." According to Wikipedia it is the principle that 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. The principle is touted in business as "80% of your sales come from 20% of your customers." Research again and again shows the truth of this principle-and I saw another one last week that confirmed it once again.

According to the authors of the book, Empowered, research shows that in online social media (blogs, review sites, discussions, networking, etc.) 16% of users generate 80% of the content. The small impact the many.

Bring this proven principle to your day. What if you frequently reviewed your schedule and tasks and identified the 20% of tasks that accomplish 80% or so of your purpose? You would probably work harder to protect those items and insure their completion. They would take the highest priority in your day or week and you would build the rest of your schedule around them-instead of hoping you got time to work on them. You would also work to be more efficient with the other 80% of what you do so you could be more effective with the 20% that makes the largest impact.

Try the Pareto Principle today. You might just find that the few tasks you really focus on can make the biggest difference.

Checks and Balances For Your Performers

Statistics aren't always easy to follow, but stay with me. According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, 86% of the people found to be perpetuating fraud in businesses (cooking the books, embezzling funds, etc) had never been charged with a prior offense. Based on their research, they concluded, conducting background checks have "limited value in screening out potential wrongdoers."

In other words, people don't have an internal desire to cheat a company and then go from organization to organization trying to take something that doesn't belong to them. What happens, in many cases, is that there were not the procedures in place to prevent or minimize attitudes or actions that could lead to such behaviors.

While the study focused on money, could we not draw similar conclusions about how people use their time at work? They are certainly having a negative impact on the company if they are not engaged on the right tasks-if they are engaged at all. If you manage others, what systems have you put in place to keep people focused and productive? Most people didn't intend to come to work and waste their time and energy, but if the work environment encourages such behavior because of poor focus or lack of clarity about priorities, well.... you might just have someone stealing from you. Some suggestions to start increasing engagement in your employees include:

• Don't be afraid to ask people what their top priorities are for the day or week. Be prepared to share yours as well.
• The old management principle of "MBWA" (management by walking around) still has value. As you move around, watch how people are working. Think about what obstacles you see or hear that could be removed or minimized to help improve their focus.
• As a department, consider having people keep a time log for a day or week. They don't have to give them to you, but simply ask them questions like, "What did you see that you spent your time on that was surprising?" "Are there items occupying more of your time than you think they should?" "How could I contribute to improving the situation?"

The Phone Is For Me

It is important to be reminded on occasion that telephones/cell phones and email accounts are created as tools for you to use and that they also exist for your convenience. Just because the phone rings or the email pops up, doesn't mean that you have to respond, answer or read immediately. Subject lines and caller id are great tools to help you gauge whether or not you need to respond quickly (i.e. answer the phone or open the email). If you are doing something important or need to focus it is even better to turn off your phone and/or email completely.

You may have a job that requires you to answer and reply to calls and emails immediately. That is your job and you shouldn't ignore that responsibility. But more often than not, there are times when you should stay on task or give someone or something your undivided attention. Don't allow a call to interrupt your dinner with your family. Don't check email while you are having a conversation with a coworker or employee. Don't allow an email popup about "cute kittens doing funny things" interrupt your focus on your work. Schedule regular intervals to check email and voicemail so that you can stay in touch and respond appropriately but otherwise, try using the mute button.

A Double Take To-Do List

Spending 10-15 minutes to formally plan your day is a great tool for focusing on what matters most to you. But there is nothing worse than making a list of 30 things to do and then finding at the end of the day that you only had time for 10.

Consider a double review of your to-do list. Start with brainstorming/reviewing your list of things to do. Now, prioritize the list in order of those things that have to get done first – those things that are most important. Once prioritized, place your task list next to a list of the hours in the day (you can make a list of the hours of the day on a piece of paper, use a planner that lists the hours of the day, the Calendar in Outlook, etc.). Starting with your first task, block out when you are going to do that task on your calendar and how long it will take. Then continue down your task list blocking out times when you are going to accomplish each task. Easy enough?

Some tasks are simple and only take a few minutes (you can list multiple tasks in a block of time). Some tasks are more complex and you might only be able to block out a small portion of time to work on the task and come back to it tomorrow (e.g. Work on next years budget that is due next week). What you might initially find is that about half way down your list you have run out of time in the day to get all of your tasks done. That is OK! As long as you truly prioritize your list, you will have planned for the most important things that you need to get done today.

With the remaining tasks that you don't have time today for you can forward them on to tomorrow or another day. You can also consider deleting the unimportant tasks and delegating those items that someone else can help you with.

Two more tips: Tip #1; remember to build in some gaps in your schedule for interruptions and the unforeseen. If you get behind in your day and your schedule is too full, there is no catching up unless you have a buffer or two built into your plan. Tip #2; to keep on schedule, try setting the alarm on your cell phone, wrist watch or buy an "egg timer" that you can set for the amount of time that you have allotted to focus on your task. When the alarm rings, it is time to move on. If you can't move on, then consider how your schedule will have to change and what won't get done as a result.

At first this exercise seems like a hassle and that it is time consuming. But, if you will try it for a week you will find that you have become better at estimating your time and what you can realistically accomplish in a day. You will also become more focused on your scheduled tasks because you have blocked out time for them.

Keeping a Time Log

Do you ever wonder where the time goes? Are you a manager and wonder how your people are spending their time? A great way for self reflection or to spot check the focus of your team is to keep a time log for a week.

It is a simple project. Just take a spreadsheet and label the days of the week across the top and the time you want to track in 15 or 30 minute increments down the side (depending on how detailed you want to be). Set an alarm (cell phone alarm, egg timer, watch alarm) for the top of each hour. When the alarm goes off (We know that this is an interruption – it is just for a week), stop what you are doing and record a detail of what you have done over the last hour – an entry for each 15 or 30 minute segment. We realize that it is an annoyance and a hassle. But, the result and the information that you can gather is very telling.

At the end of the week, review the week's activities. For fun, total up the amount of time you are spending in similar activities/categories like: meetings, returning calls, email, working on the XYZ report, talking with customers, eating meals, taking breaks, etc. You may be surprised at the totals. You also might be surprised at the time that you have wasted. Be honest with yourself – look at the spreadsheet and total up the time that you feel like you have been less than productive. Have your team do the same.

Now what are you going to do about it? Ask yourself these questions:

• What activities are getting the bulk of my time? Are they the most important activities?


• How can I alter what I am doing to become more efficient as well as focused on the most important items?


• What activities can be eliminated? What activities need to be added or receive a bigger allotment of my time?


• How much time am I spending in my work ring, my self ring and my relationship ring?

If you like this activity, try it for a month. It will give you a good indicator on how effectively you are using your time. Remember the quote from Ben Franklin, "Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of."