this “50/50 fallacy” is one of the most inaccurate and harmful, as well as the most deeply rooted, of our mental maps. The 80/20 Principle asserts that when two sets of data, relating to causes and results, can be examined and analyzed, the most likely result is that there will be a pattern of imbalance. The imbalance may be 65/35, 70/30, 75/25,

A new and complementary way to use the 80/20 Principle is what I call 80/20 Thinking. This requires deep thought about any issue that is important to you and asks you to make a judgment on whether the 80/20 Principle is working in that area.

I think I know the explanation, and it also explains why 80/20 is becoming even more prevalent, affecting our lives in mysterious and perplexing ways. The answer is in the burgeoning power of networks. The number and influence of networks has been growing for a long time, at first a slow increase over the past few centuries, but since about 1970

Expect everything—your time, your organization, your market, and every person or business entity you come across—to have quality 20 percent: its essence, its power, its value, a small part with substantially all the goodness hidden away by the mass of mediocrity. Look for the powerful 20 percent.

significant. The key is not effort, but finding the right thing to achieve.

Application of the 80/20 Principle implies that we should do the following: • celebrate exceptional productivity, rather than raise average efforts • look for the short cut, rather than run the full course • exercise control over our lives with the least possible effort • be selective, not exhaustive • strive for excellence in few things, rather

HINT 5: BECOME JOYFULLY, USEFULLY UNIQUE

To do this, set a “lock-gain” price at which you will sell, 15 percent below the high.

Projects obey the law of organizational complexity. The greater the number of a project’s aims, the effort to accomplish the project satisfactorily increases, not in proportion, but geometrically. Eighty percent of the value of any project will come from 20 percent of its activities, and the other 80 percent will arise because of needless