Follow Alan:

Setting Goals for Success the ‘A’ Type Way

(Part 4)

‘Continued from part 3

Once you have prioritized your to-do list, rewrite it in order of priority, then start at the top and work your way down. What you have before you is a precise plan that you can use to achieve your goals, one step at a time. This process will allow you to separate the important tasks from the many time-consuming trivial ones that should be delegated and removed from your own list.

Although to-do lists are simple tools, they are extremely powerful, both as a method of organizing yourself and as a way of reducing stress. Problems may feel overwhelming if they're left to rattle around in your head, or you may feel you have a huge number of demands on your time. Writing things down in a list (and crossing the items off the list as you accomplish them) can help relieve that feeling of being overwhelmed.

The 80/20 rule

Attributed to the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, the 80/20 rule states that the relationship between input and output is rarely proportional. When applied to your work, this means that 20% of your efforts produce 80% of your results. If you learn to identify the 20% that produces the majority of your results, you'll be able to make more effective use of your time. Although the concept is simple, putting the 80/20 rule into practice can be challenging. Here are some guidelines: You're focusing on the (unproductive) 80% if:

• You're working on tasks other people want you to do, but you yourself have little or no stake in them.
• You're frequently working on tasks considered "urgent" (in other word… “putting out fires”)
• You're spending time on tasks you're not particularly good at.
• Completing some activities is taking much more time than you expected.
• You find yourself complaining all the time about how little you seem to be accomplishing compared to the effort you put in.

You're focusing on the effective 20%, however, if:

• You're engaged in activities that advance your overall goals.
• You're working on tasks that you may not like, but you're doing them knowing they relate to your bigger purpose.
• You're asking for help with tasks you are not good at doing yourself or delegating them.
• You feel a sense of accomplishment.
• The activities are productive, proactive and profitable (must be all three).

If you're particularly skeptical, try applying the 80/20 principle for a few days just to see what happens. At the very least, you'll become more aware of the way you work, and you'll become more productive without even trying. You'll feel that you have more time, that you are able to focus on what is essential, and that you can reduce the amount of time you spend on meaningless tasks.

Whatever your working style, planning and time management have a definite place in your daily life. Put some of these tools into practice, and you may find that you're able to bring some order into what sometimes feels like "pedaling in a windstorm."

Oh yeah, next time you run into one of us ‘A’ types… ah, your welcome already!

Return to Articles

Take your potential to new heights and learn what the world's great achievers know by signing up for this
Free Newsletter

Email:

Privacy Policy

Any private information you enter in the form will be sent only to Alan Goff for the purpose of the "P3" Newsletter subscription and the occasional special offer. Your information will not be lent or sold to any outside party.

Each Newsletter contains instruction on how to remove yourself from the list.