Determining Your Priorities
Did you know that the most valuable possession you have ahead of you is your time? How are you going to spend it? In order to answer that question, John Maxwell gives us three questions to ponder.
What is required of me? Look at the big things in life. What must you do? Obviously provide for your family, be a good father and husband. What do you have to do in order to be effective in these roles? What do you have to do to be an effective employee? In order to set your priorities, you must start with the big things before you move on to the next question.
What gives me the greatest return? I know in my life I love Facebook. However, I recognize on objective analysis that it doesn’t really give me much return though I spend more time than I want to admit on it. What are those things in your life that are giving you high return? Maybe it is reading a book or taking a class. Maybe it is hanging out with people you want to emulate. Maybe it is doing a hobby that expands your mind. What are those things in your life that give you the greatest return?
What gives me the greatest reward? I know a lot of people who know what they must do and what gives them the greatest return, but aren’t content or happy. So this third question is important, because there needs to be joy in your priorities as well. The challenge is that this needs to be the third question. If I only do things that give me the greatest reward, then some very important things will be left undone. So make sure the order stays correct.
Let me give an illustration to help you. Imagine an empty bucket, and you have three different sizes of stones; large stones, pebbles and gravel that need to go into the bucket. How would you approach it? Well, the most effective way is to put the large stones in first, then the pebbles and then the gravel. I have seen when this illustration was used, people put the gravel in first, then the pebbles and then the large stones and wonder why all the large stones wouldn’t fit. You see, we have to start with the large requirements of life, then those things that give us the most return and then finally those things that give us the greatest reward. Any other order and your effectiveness and spending of your time isn’t maximized. So make sure your priorities go into the bucket of life in the correct order.
Conversation:
What are the large rocks in your life?
What are the pebbles?
What is the gravel?