Win Back 10 Hours a Week With This Simple Mindset Shift
How to apply the Pareto Principle to reclaim your time, focus on what matters, save 10 hours a week - practical, no-fluff strategies.
Reading time: 5 mins
This article isn’t related to any product or company. This is more about you.
In the past year, I’ve learned to manage time better after learning, applying, unlearning and reapplying concepts borrowed from several sources. (My most favorite source is the book Essentialism. A post will come out soon on it).
Let me paint you a familiar picture.
It is Friday, and your to-do list feels endless. Meetings, emails, and ad-hoc tasks fill your days, and yet at the end of the week, the bigs things - the work that actually moves the needle - remain untouched.
You sleep on Friday night, try to relax through Saturday, but Sunday gets over too fast, and Monday’s back again.
Studies show that we’re wired to focus on urgency over importance, defaulting to tasks that feel productive but actually aren’t. The result? You’re stuck in a cycle of busyness with little progress.
Here’s where the Pareto Principle is helpful - 80% of your desired results come from 20% of your effort.
It is not a hack. It is a mindset. A small fraction of your tasks drive real outcomes, rest is just noise.
A short personal story
My calendar at work averages 1 meeting a day. Sure, a lot of credit can be given to in-office work where the team can just come up to me and talk. But there are more small intentional judgement calls I make to keep the calendar that way.
I don’t accept “quick syncs“ even if I’m not in another meeting. When I hear “Let’s catch up for 5 mins“, I know it is a 30-45 min call
We use Slack at work. I hardly ever huddle also, when working from home. I insist on Loom videos or text messages
If people from other teams want a meeting, they get one provided I’m actually needed for more than 30 mins. Usually, it is them talking for 25 mins, while I’m dragged in for my 5 min opinion
I don’t work all day. I take breaks, I stop working for a few hours when most people are stuck in meetings. I workout in that time, complete any personal chores and read up for the next post I am writing at the time
All this might feel like I’m just being a bad teammate. My team has actually acclimatized with my routine and they work around it - only I can protect my time at then end of the day.
My team benefits too - they get more thoughtful design outcomes from me when I’m not distracted. Pareto Principle isn’t just about doing less - it’s about making what you do count.
Only 20% of my tasks create the outcomes I care about. Rest is either maintenance, buy-in or plain wasted.
Cutting The Noise - Here’s How To Do It
Slack can wait. Meetings can wait. Quick calls can wait.
Quality work shouldn’t wait.
You’re not unproductive - you’re spread too thin, trying to juggle everything at once.
Here’s how to clear the clutter, reclaim your time, and focus on the 20% that drives real results:
Cancel recurring low-value meetings
Unnecessary meetings are one of the biggest time drains. Research shows that workers spend an average of 31 hours a month in unproductive meetings. Most of these can be avoided.
Review your recurring meetings. If they don’t lead to decisions or clear outcomes, cancel them
Replace status updates or “quick-syncs“ with Loom videos or concise Slack messages. A 3-min video can save a 30-min meeting
Before scheduling a meeting, ask - “Can this be solved with an email or Loom instead?”
Batch low-focus tasks
Emails, Slack messages, and small admin tasks interrupt your focus and eat up your day. Constant multitasking can reduce productivity up to 40%.
Block two time slots daily for emails and Slack responses - one in the morning and one in the afternoon
Set boundaries by muting notifications outside of these blocks. Important step - let your team know your schedule
Group similar tasks together (e.g. Update hiring sheet, review portfolios) to minimize context switching
Say NO more often
Every time you say yes to something unimportant, you’re saying no to something meaningful. It’s uncomfortable, but essential.
Politely decline tasks that don’t align with your priorities. Try - “I am focusing on something at the moment. Can I sit this one out?“
Delegate tasks where possible. If someone else can handle it, let them
Remember this - saying no isn’t selfish - it is how you protect the time and energy needed for high-value work
Focus on what matters and avoid the rest
Not everything deserves your attention. The more you focus on high-impact work, the more intentional you can be about ignoring the noise.
Begin each day by identifying your top 1-2 priorities - the tasks that will make the biggest difference
Balance this with a “Not-to-do“ list - anything that you consider noise
Keep both lists visible to stay clear on what matters and where you’re wasting time.
My reading list page has a few book recommendations on time and project management:
BONUS: My Personal To-Do List Technique
After reading Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy, I tried the A,B,C,D task prioritization system, breaking tasks into A1, A2, and so on. It worked - but it was too elaborate and time-consuming for daily use.
So, I simplified it.
Instead of listing tasks vertically, I divide a page in my task notebook into 3 columns: A,B, C.
A: 2-3 high impact tasks that must get done
B: Important but less critical tasks
C: Low-priority maintenance tasks that can wait
My goal is simple: complete all A tasks, at least 50% of B tasks, and let the rest of C roll into tomorrow guilt-free.
Seeing tasks grouped this way keeps me focused on priorities while giving me a clear picture of the day.
P.S. I love using Microsoft To-Do to have the A task list on my phone at all times.
This week, challenge yourself.
Audit your calendar, cancel one unnecessary meeting, and focus on just three tasks that truly matter. See how much more you can accomplish by doing less.