https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle

In my 2004 book, Software Endgames, I leveraged the Pareto Principle extensively when considering defect clustering and triage.

in 2013, I wrote one of my first posts about the Pareto Principle.

in 2017, I wrote the following - https://rgalen.com/agile-training-news/2021/5/17/revisiting-pareto-and-you

But I realized just the other day that I hadn’t revisited Pareto for six years, and I felt it was time to focus on it solely in the context of Agile Coaching.

80% of your coaching impact will be realized by 20% of your coaching clients.
80% of your client's realized value will emerge from 20% of your coaching time.
80% of your client's emergent discovery will be inspired by 20% of your powerful coaching questions.
80% of your self-awareness discovery will result from 20% of your reflective time.
80% of organizational value & impact will be delivered by 20% of Agile Coaches.
80% of the positive impact in our community is provided by 20% of the Agile Coaches.
80% of the deep & rich Agile Transformation experience is held by 20% of the Agile Coaches.
80% of organizational challenges in agile contexts are navigated by 20% of the Agile Coaches.
80% of the overall consulting revenue opportunity is earned by 20% of agile coaches.
20% of the agile coaches have the ethics, to ethically navigate 80% of their clients.
80% of your Agile Coaching impact for a given client will be driven by 20% of your coaching stances. (see the ACGW)
80% of your coaching insights will result from 20% of your reflection time.
80% of your Agile Coaching skills will have emerged from 20% of your certification & training classes.
80% of the ethical behavior awareness comes from 20% of the Agile Coaches.

I could keep brainstorming these Pareto Principal-derived ideas, but I’d challenge readers to share other notions of Pareto in-action in Agile Coaching contexts. Can you come up with some of your own? Consider adding them to this post as comments…

Implications

The major implications of the above thought experiment are next to consider.

Work hard to become one of the 20% of effective, experienced, and well-rounded Agile Coaches.
Be selective in your coaching to find the right clients at the right time for the right impact—honing in on the 20%, for example—
Be willing to say no. Be willing to say Yes, taking on new risks and experimenting. Be willing to be open-minded to new challenges.
Use your Pareto thinking to reflect on your own—
Efficiency, Impact, Time management & investments, Self-care, and Value delivery.
Mentor and coach those inspired to become part of the 20%.
Relentlessly look for 20% activities and be willing to drop non/low value or impact activities. At least for now…

Wrapping Up

I’m challenging myself to weave Pareto thinking into every aspect of my Agile Coaching and reflective practices. I know there are many areas where I can do more with less; I need to be on the lookout for them continuously.

Stay agile and stay less, my friends,

Bob.