The 80/20 Action Planner

Find Your High-Leverage 20%

Use this simple exercise to separate the vital few tasks from the trivial many. The goal is to identify which of your actions are producing the majority of your desired results, so you can double down on what works and minimize what doesn't.

Part 1: The 80% Results Audit

First, get crystal clear on what "results" you're measuring. Then, list the specific causes that have driven those results.

What is the primary result I want to achieve? (e.g., Revenue, Audience Growth, Client Leads)

_________________________

What are the top 3-5 causes that have actually produced this result in the past?

1. _________________________ (e.g., Cold outreach on LinkedIn)
2. _________________________ (e.g., Posting short-form video content)
3. _________________________ (e.g., Collaborating with other creators)

"What is the 20% of work that will lead to 80% of the impact I want to create?" - Greg McKeown, author of Essentialism

Part 2: The 20% Action Identification

Now, list ALL the tasks you typically do in a week. Be brutally honest and include everything.

My Typical Weekly Task List (The Trivial Many & Vital Few):

- Answering all emails as they arrive
- Tweaking my website's font colors
- Cold outreach on LinkedIn
- Scrolling social media for "research"
- Attending meetings with no clear agenda
- Posting short-form video content
- Collaborating with other creators
- etc...

My High-Leverage 20% (The Vital Few):

Compare your two lists. Circle the tasks from your weekly list that directly align with the top 3-5 causes you identified in Part 1. These are your 20%.

My Action Plan for Next Week:

How will I intentionally spend more time on my 'Vital Few' tasks and aggressively spend less time on everything else?