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The 80/20 Principle

Technology has given us amazing tools over the years. We can see signs of it everywhere: scientific advances have cured diseases, extended life spans, and enabled instant worldwide communication. That’s all great, but society doesn’t understand how to use these advances properly. People still think that they get more out of doing more – and that’s not true at all.

In reality, if you want to be happier, find a way to get more by doing less. Specifically, examine your life until you identify the most valuable and productive activities that give you the best return for your effort. Your job is to identify these things in every area of your life because everyone has different areas of strength and pleasure.

The 80/20 principle is not elitist. It’s based on attributes that are common to everyone, and anyone can implement it in their lives.

Most people think that they have to work hard to achieve success. However, this principle is not about working harder. It’s about thinking differently and changing your view of the world. You must resist society’s influence on you and change your way of thinking in order to apply this principle successfully. Paradoxically, although applying the 80/20 Principle will bring you more ease and pleasure, it won’t be easy because it requires a shift in perspective.

When you start applying the 80/20 principle, three things will happen: * First, if you decide to stop working once you’ve gotten what you want, it will never get done. Human desire is infinite. * Second, when comparing yourself to others, there’s always someone better than you are in every way. You’ll never be satisfied with your accomplishments because everyone else is improving as well. It’s important that this doesn’t distract or discourage you from achieving your own goals and desires. * Thirdly, most people feel that ambition and striving are good traits on their own; however they’re only good when they help us reach our goals and aspirations more quickly.

Step 1 – Find Your Passion

To live by the 80/20 principle, you must take action. First, identify that small percentage of all the things in your life that is most important and profitable to you. Review your life methodically to find what excites you most. Then comes the tough part: making that a core part of your life.

It is important to find a passion that is easy. If you are working hard at something and not enjoying it, then you haven’t found your true passion yet.

Step 2 – Subtract

Once you’ve identified your core passion, the next step is to recognize that most things have limited worth and eliminate those elements. The 80/20 principle does not require you to be good at everything. Instead, it requires recognizing the opposite truth – that your gifts lie in specific areas. Focus on those areas, to the exclusion of everything else. As you do this, you’ll become more individual and more yourself; by focusing on fewer habits (and eliminating ineffective ones), you’ll reach your goals most pleasantly.

Step 3 – Living on “Happiness Island”

The next step is to slow down and live in the moment, because once you identify what matters most to you, you’ll get more out of it by spending plenty of time on each one. If you truly practice the 80/20 principle (spending 20 percent of your time focused on things that matter), then those periods will fill up more and more of your life.

The 80/20 principle is not just about identifying what matters most. You must also develop an action plan to make it happen. Figure out your goals and the route you’ll follow to reach them, and then put together a reminder of your plan so that you can refer back to it. Review it regularly for progress toward those goals, and ask yourself if there are easier or more pleasurable ways to get where you’re going.