The 80/20 Rule

Statistics, I am literally dying in a MANAGERIAL DECISION MAKING class which is really statistics hidden under a high level class title.

Apart from in undergrad, I have never really broached statistics in my life. The most I ever labeled as a statistical calculation is something that was taught to me by a partner/mentor/friend in my years of entrepreneurship. He taught me the 80/20 rule. 80% of your accidents are caused my 20% of your drivers.

I then extrapolated that rule into everything in my life. For example, when you form a team to deliver a project, 20% of the resources will deliver 80% of the tasks on time. And it goes on and on.

This statistics class is teaching me a lot of formulas and I can’t help but think that 0% of these will ever apply to my life/career.

So ironically I have my statistical flagship “the 80/20” rule not applying to loads and loads of statistics that I am learning.

Rather sad.

In context to this blog however, I had assumed that the online courses would be more targeted and not suffer from human interpretation of the professors (some professors aren’t really human – just FYI) like in the regular B&M establishments. But no luck here, professors in online schools who have a personal affinity to a particular subject will teach it all day long completely outside the context of a class.

I will tell you this however, 20% of the professors will deliver 80% of what you actually use.

A fact that I once subscribed to, and had forgotten however now finally re-intimating myself with it over the square root of X divided by (5y +/- 1) all divided by 100.

Congruent with my last posting, my team mates seem to be enjoying the statistics, or so the post in the classroom. This begs me to ponder, do individuals that make it to a “high level” thinking stage in their career really ever appreciate statistics?

If they do then I can understand how my team mates are enjoying this, but if the don’t then maybe online schools, while not requiring GMAT scores should at least ensure that an individual should have five years of professional experience before the obtain their MBA.

This way the level of interaction would be at a higher level and the professors would be held to a higher standard.

I strongly believe this.

Nonetheless, I am bitter since for one of the very rare occurrences in my life, I am looking at a darn B. Ironically it means that I was barely able to score 80% of the grade in the class and 20% was lost because I could not mimic what every Texas Instrument scientific calculator can do.

Richie Etwaru