Archive - Originally posted on "The Horse's Mouth" - 2004-08-15 12:34:20 - Graham Ellis
"The first 90% of a software project takes the first 90% of the time, and the final 10% takes the second 90%" - Anon, but I'm sure someone can attribute it.
I scanned the flyleaf of a book at Heathrow a couple of weeks ago, and it was talking about an 80 / 20 rule, where 80% of effort goes on 20% of effect, and therefore 20% of effort generates 80% of effect. The moral seems to be to try to identify the effective 20% of effort and grow it, weeding out the less effective 80%. Certainly, I find myself too busy to take on all the projects and opportunities I would like and I'm looking to make more and more tuned and effective use of my time, not being frightened to say "no - that's not up my line".
Having read the flyleaf, I returned the book to the shelf. As I was understanding the introduction, I had gained 80% of the goodness in 20% of the time that a more thorough scan would require.