Pareto profiles | Jen Bilik

Pareto* Profiles is an ongoing series that asks artists, designers and communicators to consider the 80/20 rule in relation to their own lives and work. The goal: to understand the unique 20 percent that fuels their individual inspiration, success and happiness.

Today’s profile is Jen Bilik, owner and founder of Knock Knock. Knock Knock’s witty, design-driven books, gifts and stationery products sell to the tune of over $7 million in 3,500 stores across the United States, not to mention Canada and the rest of the world. In addition to her boring CEO duties, Jen continues to serve as Knock Knock’s executive creative director.

If 80 percent of your inspiration comes from 20 percent of your interests … what are those interests?

I’d say at least 20 percent of my interests involve reading in some way, whether books (at least one a week), newspapers (I’m addicted to the New York Times online), magazines (yes, I subscribe to People), Internet browsing (I love playing “follow that click,” where one item leads to another, and before I know it, I’ve tumbled down the rabbit hole and lost two hours of my day), research (a more focused subset of Internet browsing—I’m really kind of a lapsed academic, and research informs all of Knock Knock’s products, even though that work might not be readily apparent), and, more recently, social media (like I needed Facebook to suck more of my time). Reading also frequently involves pictures and design, so it’s my conduit to visual inspiration as well. I find myself lost without narrative. Music isn’t nearly good enough while I exercise, for example—it has to be This American Life or TV on my iPhone. Since Knock Knock’s products are on the conceptual side, my ideas derive from stories and culture. And when it comes to running the business side of Knock Knock, as someone without prior business experience, I’m mostly self-taught from books and articles, which are constantly inspiring me in strategy, marketing, human resources and the like.

If 80 percent of your success comes from 20 percent of your talent … what is that talent?

I’m not the best writer in the world, I’m not the best crafter in the world, I’m not the best designer in the world, and I’m not the best businessperson in the world. However, I think I have something special when it comes to combining all four. Sometimes I wonder if this was helped by classical piano training throughout my youth and adolescence—studies show that musicians, especially pianists, have a larger, better-developed corpus callosum, connecting the two sides of the brain. I thrive on doing both types of activities; the business is a tonic for the creativity, while the creativity is a tonic for the business. One has concrete answers (at least when it comes to spreadsheets and quantitative analysis) while the other has subjective solutions. In Knock Knock, I found my solution to “Jill of all trades, master of none.” I suppose there’s one other 20 percent talent for me: wit. I love words, am facile and quick with them, and have a well-developed sense of humor thanks to a certain amount of childhood trauma. Knock Knock’s success is definitely based in large part on its wit.

If 80 percent of your happiness comes from 20 percent of your work … what is that work?

Analyzing and solution forging. These apply to both the creative and the business sides of what I do (though I don’t want it to seem that business isn’t creative—one of the most surprising things about the Knock Knock journey was my realization that business was incredibly creative). The kernel of an idea is frequently over-celebrated, à la 1 percent inspiration, 99 percent perspiration (a less balanced Pareto Principle!). Kernels are a dime a dozen; execution is all. The fun part for me is right after the idea kernel presents itself, when we get to riff and expand and test. Or, when a challenge arises, we need to analyze it and brainstorm on solutions. Poking holes in things is the best way to come up with the best solution, whether creative or business, and I’m a bit of a gadfly, so I find that process very satisfying. I’m happy when my brain is most engaged, firing on all cylinders. I wouldn’t quite say, as many do, that it’s therefore “not work,” but I like work, and that’s my favorite work.

*Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto (1848–1923) observed that 80 percent of his country’s wealth was held by 20 percent of its population. From that observation comes the Pareto Principle, or as it’s commonly known, the 80/20 rule. This rule is considered by some to be one of the great truths of business.