The year was 1909. An Italian man had just finished carrying out research, and he couldn’t wait to share his discovery with the whole world. 

He picked up his pen and wrote out the title of the paper he was about to publish: 

“Cours d’économie politique” – Course in Political Economy. 

What does a course in political economy have to do with you? 

What had he discovered that was about to spark major controversy? 

The man in question was Vilfredo Pareto, and he had just completed his research on land distribution among the people of Italy. 

His discovery? 

“80% of the land in Italy belonged to 20% of the families.” 

Nepotism?

Family privilege?

Amount of money in the bank?

Yes, these are all factors that could obviously have led to this outcome. 

But you see, , this discovery became the cornerstone of what we now call the Pareto Principle. 

But Tẹ̀ṣọ́, how does this relate to the phrase “locked in”? 

It’s Labour Day today—and an even more beautiful thing to note is that it’s a public holiday here in Nigeria. 

But I want to ask you something that’s been on my mind lately: 

*Are you really “locked in”… or just lost in the sauce? 

We throw around the term “locked in” so much these days: 

- “I’m locked in on this project.” 

- “Locked in, no distractions.” 

- “Locked in, grinding.” 

I mean, it’s cool to be locked in. 

But here’s what I’ve realised:  

Being “locked in” doesn’t always mean you’re moving forward.

You can be deeply focused and still be focused on the wrong things. 

You can be “busy” and still not be productive. 

That’s the hard truth.

In a world that glorifies hustle, many of us are stuck in loops of unproductive work – replying to every email, tweaking every little thing, jumping from task to task – without ever actually moving the needle. 

Being productive is different. 

It’s intentional. 

It’s about doing the work that matters.

The work that brings value, not just sweat. 

You don’t get rewarded for how much work you do—you get rewarded for the value your work creates. 

So today, as we honour the labour behind our dreams, I want to remind you of this:

✅ Rest is not laziness. 

✅ Value is not measured in exhaustion. 

✅ Progress is not the same as motion. 

If you’ve been caught up in busyness and not seeing results—

it might be time to zoom out,

reevaluate,

and re-lock in on what actually matters. 

Let’s commit to meaningful work, not just more work. 

Let’s choose value over vanity metrics. 

Let’s make this messy, beautiful, creative journey count. 

As for Pareto’s Principle, it’s a principle that focuses on the

20% of important work that gets 80% of the job done.

It’s also called the

80/20 rule. 

This new month, what’s the 20% work you need to lock in for? 

Remember, I’m here to lend a helping hand—as are the 130+ members of this community. 

Happy Labour Day, friend, and happy new month. 

With heart,  

Tẹ̀ṣọ́  

P.S. Forward this to that creative friend who’s been “booked and busy” but needs a gentle nudge to breathe and re-strategise.

They’ll thank you for it.