“The 80/20 principle has helped to shape the modern world. Yet it has
remained one of the great secrets of our time—and even the select
band of cognoscenti who know and use the 80/20 principle only
exploit a tiny proportion of its power.”
“Conventional wisdom is to not put all your eggs in one basket. 80/20
wisdom is to choose a basket carefully, load all your eggs into it, and
then watch it like a hawk.”
“The 80/20 principle, like the truth, can make you free. You can work
less. At the same time, you can earn and enjoy more.”


The 50:50 belief vs. the 80:20 rule
At an intellectual level, a ratio of 50:50 makes sense in relation to
effort put in and results gained. If you put in a “good” effort, you will
get a “good” result. If you “work hard,” you can expect a certain level
of reward. This is the mentality that has driven society for generations,
and there is a certain merit in it in terms of maintaining societal coherence.
A clear work–reward equation creates a stable society, within
which mediocrity is accepted and conformity rewarded. Unfortunately,
as Koch illustrates, this is no longer the world in which we live.


Becoming a time revolutionary
Most of what we consider valuable comes from only a fraction of how
we spend our time. In order greatly to increase our effectiveness, or our
happiness, or what we earn, we must expand that fraction beyond 10
or 20 percent to a much greater share of our time. Koch says that our
society’s appreciation of time is poor. “We don’t need time management,”
he says, “we need a time revolution.”
Conventional time management is about increasing the efficiency of
what we do and becoming better at prioritization. Koch believes that
the failing of all types of time management is the assumption that we
know what is and what isn’t a good use of our time in the first place.
Its second fault is the assumption that time is short, that we have many
important things to do and are constantly under pressure.
To get phenomenally better in our use of time, however, the 80/20
principle requires us to go back to our “priorities” and see if they really
reflect the best use of our life in general. Koch is blunt about it: “Most
people try too hard at the wrong things.” Since the principle reflects
nature’s imbalance in the way things actually operate, there is no use
thinking about time rationally.


It’s OK to be lazy if you are intelligent about it
Do you constantly strive while not really getting anywhere? Koch introduces
us to the Von Manstein matrix. Von Manstein was a German
general who concluded that the best officers, those who made the least
mistakes and were the most far-sighted, were both intelligent and, by
inclination, lazy. Koch applies the matrix to today’s economy, stating
that the key to becoming a star is to “simulate, manufacture, and
deploy lazy intelligence.” Instead of choosing the difficult, or a generic
goal that we think will bring us respect, we should focus on what
comes easily.
Amazingly, capitalism allows a person to become successful and rich
just by being themselves: In fulfilling their highest expression, they
automatically create a very small but highly valuable niche. This is in
full accord with an information economy demanding ever-greater specialization,
because no one does what we do, quite like we do. This
applies even in markets where there appears to be endless supply and
small demand, such as acting and sport. There are hundreds of professional
tennis players, but only one is Andre Agassi, whose unique
appearance and attitude win him many times the endorsements of players
of similar rank. In all fields, the key to leadership is enthusiasm,
inveterate curiosity, and continual learning. Yet these things are not
work.
80/20 thinking is the combination of ambition with a relaxed and
confident manner. It involves reflective thinking (allowing insights to
come, rather than leaping into action), unconventional use of time, and
a hedonistic philosophy. Koch believes that in our “work equals success”
culture, hedonism has been smeared. Hedonism is not selfishness:
The more we love doing something the better we will be at it, increasing
the likelihood that it will benefit others.