The biggest mistake people make in life design is trying to do too much. We take that massive, 50-item brain dump from Day 5 and try to cram all of it into January. We think that "busy" equals "productive," but usually, busy is just a defense mechanism against doing the hard, scary work that actually moves the needle. Today, we are going to be ruthless. We are going to apply the Pareto Principle—the 80/20 rule—to your life. We are going to find the 20% of your activities that will produce 80% of your results, and we are going to give ourselves permission to ignore the rest.
The 80/20 rule is a law of nature. 20% of the seeds in a garden produce 80% of the flowers. 20% of your habits produce 80% of your happiness. Conversely, 80% of your stress usually comes from just 20% of your obligations. If you try to give 100% of your energy to 100% of your list, you will end up with 0% results. Success is not about "getting it all done." It is about getting the right things done. To say a powerful "Yes" to your North Star, you have to say a thousand "No’s" to "good" ideas that are currently stealing your time.
Open your guidebook to Page 24, the 80/20 Edit worksheet. We are going to perform "Goal Surgery."
The Trivial Many: Look at your Master Brain Dump. Identify the top 10 goals or projects you think you want to tackle in 2026.
The Vital Few: Now, look at that list of 10 and ask: "If I could only achieve TWO of these, which two would make the other eight easier or irrelevant?" Circle those two. These are your "Vital Few."
The Not Now: The remaining eight goals are now your "Avoid at All Costs" list. You are not allowed to touch them until the first two are firmly established or completed.
BONUS | The 10-Minute Reset: Identify one "Trivial" task that has been on your to-do list for months (something you feel like you should do, but it doesn't actually excite you or move you toward your North Star). Delete it. Not "postpone it," not "move it to next week," delete it entirely. Notice the physical sensation of relief that comes when you realize you don’t have to carry that weight anymore.
