How to Identify Key Priorities With the 80/20 Rule

Harsh truth: If you’re still doing everything yourself, you’re not leading—you’re limiting. Your ability to delegate determines your capacity to grow. I’ve worked with C-suite leaders, startup founders, and Fortune 500 executives. And delegation consistently shows up as the silent killer of productivity, scale, and team morale. This visual breakdown is more than a framework— It’s a mirror. Let’s dive deep: 1. Use the Eisenhower Matrix Weekly—Not Once. Don’t just categorize tasks once a year. Every Monday, sort your to-dos:     •    DO: What only you can do.     •    DECIDE: Block time to think.     •    DELEGATE: Offload to free brainspace.     •    DELETE: Be ruthless. If it doesn’t move the needle, let it go. Pro tip: Color-code your calendar by these quadrants. 2. Delegate Outcomes, Not Instructions. Leaders often say: “They don’t do it the way I would.” That’s because you delegated tasks, not outcomes. Instead of: “Create a report by Friday.” Try: “I need a report that helps us understand why conversions dropped 20%. Use any format that gets us there.” Ownership > Obedience. 3. Apply the 80/20 Rule Ruthlessly. Ask:     •    What’s the 20% of what I do that drives 80% of my impact?     •    What tasks take 80% of my time but create minimal ROI? Everything outside that 20% should either be delegated or deleted. 4. Build a Delegation Dashboard. This has helped multiple CEOs I coach. A simple Google Sheet that tracks:     •    Task     •    Who it’s delegated to     •    Deadline     •    Check-in point     •    Outcome This gives visibility without micromanagement. 5. Feedback = Acceleration. Most leaders only give feedback when something breaks. World-class leaders do it weekly—even when things go well. Positive feedback reinforces ownership. Constructive feedback sharpens performance. Make feedback a rhythm, not a reaction. Here’s my mantra to every leader I coach: You are not the system. You are the architect of the system. When you stop being the bottleneck, your business becomes scalable. Your team becomes self-led. And you finally step into your true role: Strategic leadership. If you’re a leader tired of being “busy,” Let’s talk about building systems that free you. Because leadership isn’t about doing more. It’s about doing what only you can do. #ExecutiveCoaching #LeadershipDevelopment #Delegation #HighPerformanceTeams #FounderCoach #ProductivityTips

Are you focused on what is essential? How do you even know? Do you pour over spreadsheets and data? Obsessively talk to customers? Listen to the experts within your organization? In the book Essentialism, Greg McKeown talks about uncovering the essential insights that allow you to do the work that truly matters. Essentialism is a philosophy that helps us cut through the noise and prioritize activities that contribute directly to revenue. It's about doing less, but better. Many revenue teams find themselves stretched too thin because “everything is a priority”. This is the wrong mindset. A team working on THE essential goal is really clear in who they are targeting, what they are targeting them with, and the outcome they are trying to achieve. Essentialism is about identifying your North Star metric, having the discipline to explore big ideas, eliminating what doesn't matter, and ruthlessly executing towards what is important. Here's what I mean by each of those things as it relates to revenue teams. STEP 1. IDENTIFYING YOUR NORTH STAR ➖ What is most critical? What metric does the revenue org need to achieve to successfully drive business growth? ➖ What trade-offs do you need to make and how will you stack rank them? ➖ What will you blatantly say no to? STEP 2. EXPLORE BIG IDEAS. ➖ Apply the 80/20 rule. What is the 20% of the business that drives 80% of the results? How will the team accelerate this? ➖ Automate everything that is non-essential. Create processes that reduce noise so time can be spent exploring ideas. ➖ Create space to listen, evaluate, and t-shirt size everything. But only say yes to a few. ➖ Empower teams to think and dream big. Reduce constraints and blockers so that ideas can become reality. STEP 3. ELIMINATE WHAT DOESN'T MATTER. ➖ Deeply understand your customer and use the insights to drive your strategy. Ignore any request that doesn't align to your ICP. ➖ A/B test your way into knowing what works and what doesn't. Use agility in testing to prove a hypothesis and reduce decision making fatigue. ➖ Set priorities and say no to everything else. STEP 4. EXECUTE. ➖ Proactively plan for potential roadblocks and delays. Allocate buffer time. ➖ Be nimble and adjust accordingly using performance data. ➖ Stay focused on priorities. Celebrate small wins. ➖ Figure out what works and do more of that. Routinely trim what's not working. How do you help your teams continuously figure out what is essential to driving growth? #b2b #revenue #marketing #sales #revenueoperations #saas

If you don’t know how to create systems, you will never achieve true freedom as an entrepreneur. Here is the exact process I used to build systems that help me manage 8-figure companies (while working 4 hours a day and traveling the world): Systems are the secret weapon of entrepreneurs like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. Systems allow you to: • Eliminate unnecessary work  • Automate repetitive tasks like email marketing  • Delegate so you can focus on high-impact work A good system shortens the road to the goal. My 5 Rules for creating a successful system: Rule 1: No morning meetings • Consolidate all meetings to 1 day per week  • Use async video tools like Loom to record updates instead of meetings Protect your peak creative hours for deep work. Meetings are a creativity killer. Rule 2: 4 hours of deep work per day • Use the Eisenhower Matrix to prioritize important over urgent • Focus the first 4 hours on critical tasks that drive 80% of growth Quality deep work trumps quantity of shallow work. Example: My deep work time is sacred. From 6 am to 10 am, I focus solely on content creation and product development. No meetings, no calls, no distractions. This 4-hour block is when I do my most impactful, needle-moving work. Everything else can wait. Rule 3: Automate, Eliminate, Delegate • Automate repetitive tasks  • Eliminate unnecessary tasks that don't drive growth • Delegate low-value activities to team members As an entrepreneur, focus only on high-impact tasks. This frees up 20+ hours/week to reinvest in growth. Rule 4: Apply the 80/20 principle • Identify the 20% of activities/clients driving 80% of results • Double down on those and eliminate or delegate the rest • Always ask yourself: "What's the most important thing I can do now?" Focus on the vital few, not the trivial many. Rule 5: Architect scalable systems Systemize content creation, distribution, and monetization. • My content assembly line allows me to produce weekly content in 2 hours • My distribution is systematized through auto-posting • My self-serve sponsorship systems helps monetize My personal routines are also systemized: • Morning journaling to gain clarity • Evening reflection to optimize the next day • Daily movement to energize body and mind By making these non-negotiable habits, my days run on autopilot for maximum productivity and performance. Start implementing systems today: • Write down all your recurring tasks and responsibilities • Break them into documented step-by-step processes • Use automation tools to eliminate manual work • Delegate remaining tasks to team members • Continuously optimize for efficiency — Enjoy this? ♻️ Repost it to your network and follow Matt Gray for more. Want help implementing this strategy in your own brand? Send me ‘Freedom’ and I’ll share how we can support. For action-takers only, not info collectors.

Most PMs burn out chasing perfection while elite PMs use the 80/20 rule. I admit it. I used to be a perfectionist. But I don't strive for perfect projects anymore. Why? Because I've discovered something that transformed my approach to project management. The difference? It's not about working harder or longer hours. It's about working smarter. I've spent years watching myself and others push past breaking points, and here's what I've learned: → Average PMs exhaust themselves trying to perfect everything. → Elite PMs identify what truly matters and focus their energy there. Let me show you what I mean. The typical PM approaches a project by: 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆. - They burn the midnight oil. - They stress over every detail. - They collapse at the finish line. But the elite PM asks: 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 20% 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿 80% 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲? See the difference? The first PM drains their team's energy on low-impact tasks. The second PM conserves resources for what actually moves the needle. This 80/20 principle appears everywhere in project management: 80% of your results come from 20% of your efforts. 80% of your problems come from 20% of your risks. 80% of your objectives are met by 20% of your requirements. And often, it's even more dramatic: 90% of your budget is consumed by only 10% of your purchase orders. 95% of your time is spent troubleshooting 5% of your issues. 99% of your stress comes from only 1% of your stakeholders. (You know exactly which one I'm talking about.) Each statistic points to the same truth: not everything deserves equal attention. Why do so many PMs still chase perfection across the board? Three reasons: 1. They fear being judged for "missing something" 2. They've been rewarded for perfectionism in the past 3. They haven't learned to distinguish between critical and merely important But here's the truth: There will always be more you could do on any project. Always another improvement. Always another feature. By focusing on the vital few instead of the trivial many, you're not cutting corners—you're being strategic. That's the real secret of exceptional project management. Not perfect execution of everything, but perfect prioritization of what matters most. So next time you're feeling overwhelmed by a project, stop and ask yourself: "What 20% of this work will deliver 80% of the results?" The way you answer this question will determine whether you burn out or break through. ~~~ PS - Are you still trying to perfect everything? Or have you identified the 20% that truly matters for your current project? Drop a comment below. ⬇️

Not all effort is created equal. Some of it drives impact. The rest? Wasted energy. Why Are You Chasing Every Dollar? Focus on What Works. Enter the Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule. It’s simple yet profound: 80% of your results come from just 20% of your inputs. This rule applies everywhere. Startups, nonprofits, even your closet (admit it, you only wear 20% of your wardrobe). The Data Doesn’t Lie Research shows this principle holds true for donors and customers alike: Nonprofits: The top 20% of donors often contribute 80% of total funding. Startups: 20% of products or sales channels drive 80% of revenue. Your Focus: Too scattered, if you’re being honest. Yet, many organizations spin their wheels chasing every possible dollar or opportunity. Spreading themselves thin and stressing out their teams. The Lesson: Less Is More Stop trying to be everywhere, doing everything, for everyone. That’s a recipe for burnout and mediocrity. Instead: 1. Analyze your campaigns, events, or products. Which are truly driving results? 2. Double Down on what works. Focus your energy and resources on that 20%. Case in Point Take a nonprofit client of mine. They ran five annual campaigns but found that 75% of their donations came from just one event. Their fix? They scaled back, added more resources to the winning event, and grew their funding by 35% the next year. Or a SaaS founder I advised: After mapping revenue, they discovered that 3 of their 15 channels were generating most of their growth. The rest? Costly distractions. They focused on the three, trimmed the rest, and hit profitability six months faster. Your Action Plan: Here’s your next step: do a simple revenue or donor analysis. Pull up your data. Identify the top-performing campaigns, events, or channels. Dedicate 80% of your time next quarter to nurturing these. So, stop chasing every dollar. Focus on the ones that matter. With purpose and impact, Mario