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Pareto and his principle

"The power of a small minority is proportionate to its ability to persuade the majority that its own best interests lie in ignoring its own best interests." - Vilfredo Pareto


Vilfredo Pareto was an Italian economist and sociologist who made significant contributions to both fields. He originally rose to fame by applying mathematical concepts to economics. He turned to the field of sociology, however, when he noticed that mathematical concepts were not perfectly applicable to the real world and that human factors largely contributed to the ways society functions. Pareto is a steadfast believer that humans are illogical, and he used his balanced understanding of sociological and economic concepts to try improving functioning in political and social landscapes.


The 80/20 rule Pareto’s law: 80% of output is the result of 20% of input.


"The distribution of wealth is not a matter of chance but of natural law." - Vilfredo Pareto


According to Vilfredo Pareto, this is the nature of how things work, in almost any given area. Pareto first used this law to explain the distribution of wealth in his home country, Italy, as he noticed that about 80% of the wealth belonged to a mere 20% of the population. Extrapolating his data to other areas of life, he calculated that 80% of a company’s revenue generally came from about 20% of its products and customers; 80% of all crimes are committed by 20% of all criminals, and 80% of all traffic accidents are caused by 20% of all drivers.


In reality, the 80/20 rule can be stretched: more logically, it is true that about 60-90% of all output is caused by 10-30% of all input. The numbers 80 and 20, however, appear often. In an effort to accomplish any goal, it will just so happen that about 20% of the tasks on your “to-do” list will yield 80% of your results. Rather than focusing intense time and effort on each task in the sequential order of their deadlines, you are better off examining your list closely and choosing the most important 20% of tasks to be done. Spend 80% of your time doing these tasks proficiently, and worry about the other ones later.



Circulation of elites "The circulation of elites is the life blood of society." - Vilfredo Pareto


It’s all too obvious today, but it was Pareto who noticed back in the day that those most qualified to lead in government were often not the ones in charge. In an ideal world, and in perfectly open societies, those with the most ability to govern and lead would easily rise to the top. Unfortunately, Pareto realized that factors such as wealth, status, and privilege got in the way. This privilege gives people of different social classes varying opportunities and obstacles that limit or enhance their ability to rise to power.


Evidently, he didn’t solve this problem. His theory, however, informed people about how the fixation of social classes was an impediment to the best possible leadership. Pareto argued that if the government can find ways to assimilate those with the highest abilities in the lower classes into higher social ranks, then they could have chances at elitist positions, allowing society to function much better. Maximum social mobility was his goal. Understanding Pareto’s theory can inspire us to consider ways we can provide opportunities for those in lower social rankings.


These methods of ‘affirmative action’ could be in the forms of employment, education, or other avenues of access, like funding or networking opportunities. Making it more difficult for those born into power to maintain their elitism may also relieve our society of burden, and distribute some 80% of our wealth more evenly. Pareto's ideas on circulation of elites and the 80/20 rule continue to be studied and applied in various fields to this day.


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