The 4-Hour Work Week Secret: How to Nail Your Email Marketing System
Last week, I finally started reading The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss. I know, I know - it was published in 2007, and things have certainly changed since then, but as a productivity super-fan, I feel like I should have read this years ago.
I’m only halfway through, and Tim seems like an interesting character who maybe isn’t someone I’d aspire to copy, BUT I had a lightbulb moment from one of the chapters!
💡 I already knew about this, but had kind of forgotten to apply it: The Pareto Principle (also known as the 80/20 Rule).
In case you need a recap, the Pareto Principle is that roughly 80% of consequences come from 20% of causes.
In business, this might look like:
80% of your work generated by 20% of clients.
80% of results/revenue from 20% of your effort.
80% of stress from 20% of your projects.
The 80/20 Rule is Real for Solopreneur Revenue
I did a huge review of how much time I spend on client work to figure out which projects were most profitable for me. I looked at everything—1-1 projects, courses, mini-minds, the whole lot. I also looked at how much time it took to market and sell each offer.
I had some major ah-ha! moments during this process that shaped my marketing plan for the next two years. The statistic that was staring me in the face - which I didn’t recognise until I read Tim’s chapter - is that across all of my offers, the 80/20 rule is true!
This realisation has been buzzing around my brain all week. I stop in my tracks and marvel at how this rule has been happening in my business without me noticing. This is WILD, considering I track my time every single week.
Action: Finding Your High-Impact 20%
Where is the 80/20 rule showing up in your business? And what can you do about it to free up more time and make more money?
If you are experiencing decision fatigue over what marketing tasks to prioritise, taking an hour to look over where your time goes and what results you get is truly time well spent.
Here are my top tips on making the 80/20 rule work better for your marketing, specifically when it comes to your weekly email schedule and overall email marketing system that works for you as a solopreneur:
🔎 Where are you wasting time? Where are you spending the most energy for the least return (cough, social media marketing, cough)? How can you cut that back by 80%?
🔎 Find your top 20% channel. Where do the majority of your sales come from? How can you do more of that and leave the rest? (Hint: For many solopreneurs, it’s a direct email list!)
🔎 What can you automate? You need an email marketing system that handles your lead generation and sales for you. This frees up 80% of your time to spend less time hustling for clients and more time living your life.
Master Your Weekly Email Schedule in Minutes
If you know your email list is that high-value 20% that brings in 80% of your revenue, the next step is to make your weekly email schedule as efficient as possible. Why spend hours on a task that should only take minutes?
I figured out a process that lets me cut my writing time down dramatically without sacrificing results.
Want to steal my secret and get back hours in your week?
➡️ Click here to learn: Write Your Entire Weekly Email in 15 Minutes: My 3-Step Solopreneur Time Hack