The Law of The Vital Few

In our lives, multiple laws govern the outcomes we experience. The law of the vital few is the premise that there are only a few things we do that produce the majority of the outcomes we experience. The opposite is true as well. The law of the pointless many states that there are lots of things we do that produce almost nothing worthwhile. We live in a world governed by cause and effect. And yet, huge groups of people are continuously amazed that their wrong actions keep producing the wrong outcomes.

In coaching executives, I use this principle to help them narrow their focus and produce greater results. The key to life isn’t about adding more and more to your plate. In fact, that is operating under the law of the pointless many when we simply add activities. The law of the vital few helps a leader understand what they need to eliminate. The goal is to eliminate as much of the 80% of negative/pointless cause that produces only 20% of the total effect in our lives.

This process isn’t always easy or pain-free. It is, however, always worthwhile. It is worthwhile because helps us reclaim our lives. It helps us break the addiction of busyness and moves us toward a commitment to our full potential. In any position, there are between 3 and 5 daily actions that will produce the greatest outcomes. The key is to figure out what those most important things are and do them before you allow anything else into your day.

In parenting, this might be things like spending time talking with and playing with your kids. In personal finances, this would be the discipline of saying no to the shiny objects that overtax your budget. In leadership, this would be spending time with your people, and building relationships. In sales, it would be making outreach calls or creating content marketing. In every endeavor, your 20% might be different than someone else’s. I promise you this, however. There are a small set of actions that will predict your success and a large set of actions that will predict your failure.

Spend a little time figuring out what produces the least positive outcome for you and look for ways to push it after the important things, delegate it to a better person for the task, or get rid of it altogether.