Play to your strengths

I always say it pays to play to your strengths. But how do you work out which areas are your greatest strengths that will also boost your career and earn you more money?

Answer - follow the Pareto Principle or the 80/20 rule. Developed by Italian economist and sociologist Vilfredo Pareto, this short, simple rule states that 80% of your results come from 20% of your effort or activity. 

Consider for example if you are in sales, I bet around 80% of your sales come from 20% of your customers. Conversely, 80% of your complaints come from 20% of your customers and 80% of the profits made in your industry come from 20% of the companies. 

So what can you do about it? Well for starters, keep track, test and measure so you can identify which of your customers and areas are most valuable to you and returning the greatest amount without the need for you to work any harder. Similarly identify those that are draining your energy so you can better tailor your marketing spend and your valuable time based on true customer demand.

Another area to consider for example is your staff. Who in your team is a great performer and what you can you do to help them achieve even better results? Feed them, teach them and encourage them and they will return the investment to you in spades.

Until next time, all the best

Heidi Alexandra Pollard, The Communicators’ Coach