What is the 80/20 rule and why does it work?
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The 80/20 rule is that 80% of the time and effort of a job or task goes into the last 20% of finishing it. Or looking at it from the other direction, it only takes 20% of the total effort to get you 80% of the way to the finish line.
It’s not a measurable, scientific truth, but it’s good shorthand for time / project management. It’s just a reminder that the devil is in the details — You might be able put a first draft together pretty quickly, something that gives you a sense of what the finished product is going to look like, but your work is still just getting started at that point.
I like to imagine it like sculpting a statue from a solid block. Early on you’re carving big chunks out at once, and you can start to see the shape of the figure. But at the end, you’re zoomed way in on one detail, putting in a ton of effort just to carve out individual eyebrow hairs or something. The same is basically true of any task — whether it’s cleaning a house, developing a video game, writing a book, or whatever.
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