You probably heard of the 80/20 rule. It’s the mathematical equation that 20 percent of your efforts bring in 80 of your results.
But if you know this rule already are you using it?
For example if you’ve spent 80 hours at your computer this week only 20% of those hours are going to bring home the best results.
Frightening right? Nobody would intentionally waste that much time but it happening to you right now today.
So, make today the day you’re “Gonna trim the fat†and get rid of that wasted effort.
What you need to do is focus on the 20% that’s bringing home the bacon and stop doing those things that are less productive.
How?
By becoming more focused in you do…
Stop visiting forums unless its research or you genuinely have a problem and need help. Other than that avoid forums, it’s very easy to lose a couple of hours reading and replying to posts. If you need to visit a forum give yourself a time limit of how long you’re going to stay and then when its time up, get out of there!
Avoid the temptation to check your e-mail every few minutes and check out the latest promotions. (The world ain’t gonna end if you don’t buy the next big thing.)
Make a pact with yourself you’ll only read e-mail after you’ve done something productive. Then do a quick scan of the e-mail headlines and pick which ones to read. (Be choosy with what you read)
Pay attention to you web stats. Where is your web site traffic coming from articles/ pay per click / search engines?
Find out where you’re getting the best results and focus on that only forget the rest.
Are you wasting time on a project or website that’s just taking up your time and bringing in results?
Sometimes we can get attached to a particular project emotionally and it can be hard to let it go. But you need to think cold and clinically it hasn’t made any money yet and you’ve given it a fair chance move on and focus on where you are making money. (That is if you are working online to make money?
If it’s a hobby stick with it but don’t let it distract you from what you need to be doing.
These are only a few suggestions; you may find you’re wasting time in other areas than what I suggested. It differs from person to person in that my 20% may be different than your 20%.
But by working and constantly remembering the 80/20 rule you’ll start to reap the benefits in more time to spend with your loved ones enjoying life and a more profitable business. Plus with the extra time you can now work on more projects/ideas that you thought you didn’t have time to do.
If you know the answer to that one, then you’re an exceptionally well organised internet marketer. If like the rest of us you’re struggling to find an answer, then it’s time to figure out how much of the time you devote to your internet marketing activities is actually well spent.The best way to get your answer is to keep a blow by blow timetable for the next couple of weeks.
Write it all down – from the moment you sit down at your computer to the moment you switch it off again. What sites do you visit and why? How long do you spend checking your emails? How much time do you devote to promoting your products and/or services? How much time do you spend looking for new products to add to your current range?
Income From Internet Activities
You might be surprised – and shocked – by the amount of time you actually spend working towards your goal of building a substantial income from your internet activities. Chances are it’s much less than you think.
The first step towards becoming more efficient is to become more aware of how you are spending your time. Make a list of the activities you do that really move you towards a bigger income from selling products and services online, and try and spend the majority of your time on those activities. The more things you can automate the better. If you use an autoresponder, block out an afternoon each week to write four emails that can go out weekly for the next month, for example. They can then be loaded onto your autoresponder in advance and sent out at weekly intervals.
You might be like me and tend to overestimate how much time it takes you to do certain jobs; over time you will be able to plan your timetable much more efficiently as you get the hang of how you work. Just be sure to use the information you glean from your efforts to structure your days more profitably.
