In this hurly-burly world, it can be so easy to get caught up in the minute details and miss the bigger picture. Too many times, we find ourselves focusing on things that we really don’t care about and missing out on things that are important to us. How do we keep our eyes on what really matters? We prioritize.
Instead of making up a to-do list or a list of goals, why not make up a priority list? Not for the day, the week, or the month, but one for the year. Write down the things that matter the most to you, and then organize them from most to least important.
In general, you shouldn’t worry about including specifics. For instance, you don’t want to write something like “lose five pounds,” but “eat healthy” and “exercise” might make the cut. On the other hand, there may be an overarching goal that you might want to continue for years that might make the cut. For our family, under the heading “spend time with the family” would be the subheading “nightly prayers and scripture study.” Others might want to have a weekly game night, or dinner at the table every night. But your specifics should only be long-term, things that you want to consistently have as a priority.
Suppose your list comes up all generalized. You might have written: 1. Personal spirituality 2. Family time 3. Work 4. Volunteering 5. “Me” time on your list. Now take this list and post it somewhere you can see it frequently. If you keep a daily planner, put a copy of the list near the front. When you make your daily to-do list, try to keep your priority list in the front.
Of course, there are going to be times when items lower down are put instead of higher items. You might have to work late one night and miss your kid’s baseball game. But when you have to frequently refer to that priority list, when you see it on a consistent basis, you will find yourself trying to keep your priorities in order (or, at least, you should). For instance, you might decide to cut out some of your sleeping time to go into work early and finish up that project, instead of staying late. You might cut out some TV time to work on your spiritual walk.
The point is, having a priority list forces you to remember what is most important to you. In remembering, you are more likely to focus on those things, rather than let the incidentals overwhelm you.
Nola Redd is an author on http://www.Writing.Com/ which is a site for Fiction Writing. Check out her short stories in her Writing.com portfolio.
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