Have you ever heard the expression, “That’s just the tip if the iceberg?”  What kind of things run through your mind when you think of icebergs?

I looked it up to make sure, but icebergs only show about ten percent of how large they actually are.  This can be a good or bad thing depending on how you look at it.

Think about it, people really only see the success we have in business, they don’t see all of the work that it took to get there.  They don’t see all the failures, trials, and effort that went into making our success.

What is the 10%?

If you study Pareto’s Principle, he points out a common occurrence between eighty percent of the results comes from twenty percent of the actions.  For instance, eighty percent of the wealth is held by twenty percent of people.  Eighty percent of people travel on twenty percent of roads.  You can even see the same thing happening in nature, weather and even business.

If you take the Pareto principle one step further, you can see that ninety percent of the effort produces ten percent of the results.  In graduations, we honor the top ten percent.  We want to highlight the best of the best.

Honestly, in business, we want to put our best foot forward and show our successes.  No one really wants to hear about all the hours or the struggles it takes to become successful.  Everyone just wants to see the success and the results, the ten percent.

10% of effort

Ten percent of your efforts will produce ninety percent of your results.  You could narrow down to those specific items that get you the most results and then work on those specific tasks.  It would take some effort and it would be a constant movement towards being better in business and as a person.

You could try your ten percent in sales, marketing, production, etc.  Each area can be tweaked until it is a fine tuned machine.  You would see your business running smoothly and your efforts will be rewarded, but that is only the ten percent that people will see.

The 90%

The ninety percent that no one sees is your character; it is who you are when no one is looking.  The ninety percent is developing yourself to be the best version of you possible.  Then, no matter what the world throws at you, you’ll be ready.  Think about it, if you don’t have the will power, strength and wisdom to pick out the ten percent, you will be spinning your wheels in business.

God created us to do great things.  He wants us to fulfill the purpose that He has laid out in our lives.  We can’t do that if we are harboring bitterness, envy or rage.  All those things beneath the surface will come out in your life and in your business.

I am really feeling strongly about this message.  You must learn, grow and let go of the things holding you back if you want to be successful in business.  We all have pains in our past.  We all have something that we have had to overcome.  Yet, Christ has overcome the world and He lives in us.

We can take time to dig into who we are and find our true purpose in Christ.  Read books that help you develop your skills.  Pull up the Bible on your phone to strengthen your spirit.  Listen to powerful preachers and other Christian leaders on podcasts to point you in the right direction.  There are so many ways to grow in our technological world today, you just have to put in some effort (only 10%!).

Conclusion

It will be hard to be truly successful with the ten percent that everyone sees if we don’t take care of the ninety percent that people don’t see.  If you have pains, give them to God for He cares for you.  If you have bitterness, anger or grudges, release them and learn the power of forgiveness.  If you have depression, self-doubt or lack of confidence, learn to count your blessings and be thankful for all that God has done for you.

I won’t pretend to know what you are going through, but you can rest assured that I live in the same broken world you do.  We all have hurts and pains, but we can use those things to push us forward and let our ten percent show.  We can show success.  We can show business growth.  We can show the love of God through our business and our lives.

Take some time in quiet meditation and prayer.  Ask God to reveal those things that are hiding beneath the surface and keeping you from fulfilling your purpose in business.  Ask for forgiveness and learn to release pains and hurts to God.  It may not happen all at once, but working on the ninety percent that others don’t see, will help grow the ten percent that everyone can see.

You must learn, grow and let go of the things holding you back if you want to be successful in business. Click To Tweet