The 30% rule requires commitment and discipline, but the results are worth it. You’ll be surprised what you can achieve with this simple strategy used by Steve Jobs at Apple.
Steve Jobs was a business genius, a mentor, and even knew how to best respond to an insult. But he was also an expert on how to run a company and the products people needed to meet their needs.
In 1997, when Jobs returned to Apple, the company was in dire straits as it was struggling to compete with Microsoft and other companies gaining a foothold in the technology world. But the situation was precarious, to the point that his product line was too extensive and fragmented.
The company he founded in the garage with Steve Wozniak was on the verge of disappearing, as the people left in charge had lost focus on what really mattered and suffered from a serious lack of direction.
Jobs knew perfectly well that the apple brand needed to focus on what it did best, and that meant reducing products from the catalog and focusing on the most innovative devices, as well as creating new needs for people in the technological world. But, to achieve this, an effective method was needed, which is why Steve adopted the 30% formula..
Steve Jobs’ 30% Rule
It was then that Steve Jobs applied what is now known as the 30% rule, which involves a thorough review of Apple’s product line.. Approximately 30% of these devices were exceptional, which defined the quality and innovation of the brand.
However, the remaining 70% were products that were not really necessary or that did not meet the brand’s standards of excellence.
“We looked at the future product roadmap… And what we found was that 30% of them were incredibly good. And about 70% of them were pretty good, or things we didn’t really need to do. Businesses where “We didn’t really need to be in. And so, we’ve scaled that back a lot, so we could add some new things.”
The key was the decision to drastically reduce the number of products Apple was working on. This approach allowed the company to direct its resources toward the best of the best, ensuring that every device released was of the highest quality.
This is how you can apply the 30% rule to your professional life
To apply the 30% rule to your personal and professional life, you must follow some steps and ask yourself questions to achieve your goals. This way, you should think about what is most important to you. What are your goals? What are the tasks and projects that have the greatest impact on your life?
Establish priorities, so Don’t try to do everything at once so you can focus your efforts on the tasks that really matter.. Be disciplined, as it is easy to get carried away by distractions, so resist the temptation to do things that are not essential.
If you’re working on a large project, break it down into smaller tasks and then prioritize the most valuable ones. This means focusing on activities that make the most of your abilities and are truly meaningful to you.
Just as Steve Jobs made difficult decisions when reducing Apple’s product line, you may have to make challenging decisions in your professional life. This could include abandoning projects that don’t work or stopping attending events that don’t benefit you.