The 80-20 Rule

The Pareto principle, named after Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, recognized in 1906 that eighty percent of Italy’s income was earned by twenty percent of its population.  

The 80-20 rule is still very much applicable today. Eighty percent of business revenue is often generated by just twenty percent of employees. Eighty percent of the weekly conversations you have are with about twenty percent of the people you associate with. Even in your closet, twenty percent of the clothing you own is worn eighty percent of the time while the rest sits unused for months.

How else does the 80-20 rule apply in your life? Do you find the rule accurate? Is Chomsky’s (above video) explanation of “high spenders versus low spenders” fair or biased? Share your thoughts.