An interesting formula for an alleged 4-hour work week can be found in an article by Timothy Ferris in today’s Fortune Small Business feature on CNN.COM. In it, he says he applied the time management wisdom of Economist Vilfredo Pareto.
Pareto created the highly scrutinized formula demonstrating that 80 percent of the income in society is produced and owned by 20 percent of the population. Translated into marketing lingo, 80 percent of your business will likely come from 20 percent of your customers. The principle is known as Pareto’s law. The concept has been tossed around in discussion for years.
In Ferris’ article he explains how he applied this principle to his own business, the risks he took to do so, the sacrifices he had to make with regard to customer service in some cases, and how these decisions were emotional ones.
It struck me that he said he "had to make simple but emotionally difficut decisions," but he didn’t go into detail about why they were emotional. In essence, he created and administered a more productive way of doing business. But other than the obvious business choices, I wonder what thought went into his process? It made me think about where our consciousness is when making business decisions within the constructs of "time management" principles.
What is the consciousness of "time management?" By design, time management is about stealth planning and execution. But what is the deeper process and value of time management?
I think what is left out of the traditional time management principle is the value of conscious contemplation of how we use our time, and then the deeper value of what pearls of wisdom might come about when making decisions from a deeper place within ourselves. If we were to take a few moments every day to contemplate how we use our time, and how our decisions are impacting those around us and society in general, the process might guide us in an entirely new business direction.
In fact, we might make more time for ourselves by just stopping, identifying some of the issues that are holding us back or within a restrictive mode of operation, and then releasing the inhibiting behaviors, processes, or even relationships that don’t allow for a better flow in business. Inner contemplation can save us time by identifying what is not working below the surface of our every day activities, and provide a new slate to work from.
