Priorities
If you create room for the most important things first, there will always be room for the rest. But, it almost never works in reverse.
About 30 years ago, I read about this principle in Stephen Covey’s, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, one of the 20th century’s best leadership books. Then, I witnessed it and have even duplicated it for audiences. (You can click here to watch a minute and a half animated video of the demonstration.)
Essentially, when you take a jar and fill it with large rocks, it appears to be full. But, you can still fit pebbles into the jar. Even though it now looks full, you can still fit sand into the spaces that remain. If you were to try this process in reverse starting with the sand, there would be no room for the big rocks in the end.
Make a list. What are the big rocks in your life? Spiritual health, physical health, and relationships should top the list. What are the pebbles? What is the sand? Try to rank them specifically to your life. A well prioritized life carves out space for the big things first…every day, every week, rather than being swept along by the lesser things.
You probably already do this to some extent, but do a fresh reassessment. What might it look like to make room for first things first, before the lesser things take up all of your time and energy?
Worth Repeating
Putting first things first means organizing and executing around your most important priorities. It is living and being driven by the principles you value most, not by the agendas and forces surrounding you.
-Stephen R. Covey
