Do you know the 80/20 rule? I wish I discovered this technique sooner! Today’s Tool for Transformation will help you focus on what’s really important in your life and your life’s work.

Ready to step more fully into the joy of summer? Summer Energy reminds us to capture Joie De Vivre (French for Joy of Life) We were meant to live life fully and joyfully. Life is meant to be enjoyed! It is usually at this point of the year that I start asking myself, is the Juice worth the squeeze? As a society that seems to always be driven to succeed, are we paying the price through chronic stress? I feel like my post COVID life suddenly got busier than ever. I am taking this week to remind myself that it is important to relax. I am taking a moment to recognize that striving to meet my perceived needs may be bringing me more stress than happiness.

On my transformational journey, I am investigating and exploring opening to a wider lens and a bit more relaxed way of seeing so I can evaluate my needs a little bit more objectively and involve the process of simplifying. Personally I am releasing the need to be constantly doing and achieving especially in moments that I have set aside for relaxing. By creating this space, I am able to breathe more deeply and gain more of a sense for self and appreciation for the simpler things.

Tap into Summer Energy. Welcome each moment as an opportunity to live more fully and joyfully. Can you channel that inner child and remember what summer play was all about?! By learning to live with greater ease you naturally let go of the need to judge, soften criticism and allow all aspects of your being to coexist in much greater harmony with nature.

Summer Energy is fire. The heat of the dog days of summer can wear us out energetically. I was reminded recently by one of my Gurus that this fire energy can be too much causing us to become imbalanced. Thus, we need to work at 80% of our efforts and reserve 20% for relaxation, creativity and play. No wonder we all take the bulk of our vacation time in the summer!

Let’s look at the 80/20 rule another way. We can benefit tremendously by introducing a little imbalance in our day. This 80/20 rule is rooted in what’s referred to as the Pareto Principle.

Vilfredo Pareto, was an Italian economist. He “discovered” this principle in 1897 when he observed that 80 percent of the land in England (and every country he subsequently studied) was owned by 20 percent of the population. Pareto's theory of predictable imbalance has since been applied to almost every aspect of modern life. Given a chance, it can make a difference in yours.

To simplify, the 80/20 rule is about the relationship between input and output which is rarely if ever balanced. In terms of time management and work productivity, it means that approximately 20 percent of your efforts produce 80 percent of the results. Learning to recognize and then focus on that 20 percent is the key to making the most effective use of your day. Ask yourself, “What do I really want to do with my life and my time? What 20 percent of my work should I be focusing on?”

In terms of relationships, take inventory of those around you. Most likely, 20% of your friends give you 80% of the support and connection that you need. These are your true advocates. Take good care of them. These are those friends and family members who will be there for you no matter what. Those that drain you, now is definitely the time to put them on the back burner.

Here are some signs to recognize if you're spending your time as you should:

You're in your 80 percent if the following statements ring true:

You're frequently working on tasks labeled “urgent.”
You're working on tasks other people want you to, but you have no investment in them.
You're spending time on tasks you are not usually good at doing.
Activities are taking a lot longer than you expected.
You find yourself complaining all the time.

You're in your 20 percent if:

You're doing things you have always wanted to do or that make you feel good about yourself.
You are engaged in activities that advance your overall purpose in life (assuming you know what that is —and you should!).
You're working on tasks you don't like, but you're doing them knowing they relate to the bigger picture.
You're hiring people to do the tasks you are not good at or don't like doing.
You're smiling.

Summertime is the perfect time to give yourself permission to be Joyful. I have been thinking about this 80/20 concept for quite a while and one of the first realizations that I came to was, I couldn’t step fully into joy if I was still attached to those things that were holding me back. If you are operating your life from the bullets from the top list I encourage you to listen to follow the 80/20 rule for the next week and just see what happens. I can’t wait to hear how it goes!