Thanks for taking the time to read this. We are working out of John C. Maxwell’s book, MAKE TODAY COUNT. I will give you an outline of each chapter. The outline is meant to introduce you to the book, as well as help you MAKE TODAY COUNT. Remember that every day is an opportunity to be better than yesterday. I love this philosophy: NOT AS GOOD AS, BUT BETTER THAN YESTERDAY. It is either in the Michigan football locker room or band room. I wish I could take credit for the philosophy. So, BUY HIS BOOK! You will enjoy it. You bought the book and therefore, I would think you would want to enjoy it. That quote in the title of the article is attributed to John C. Maxwell.
My philosophy (which is copyrighted) is the “E-Triangle.” The “E-Triangle is an isosceles triangle. Let side – Respect. Right side – Responsible. Foundation – Discipline. Inside of the triangle – integrity and/or faith. I use “and/or” because many people do not ‘practice’ a faith and all of us should have integrity.
My philosophy in practice: Out of respect for myself and those closest to me, I will accept the responsibility to make them parts of my priorities and that will take discipline.
What are your priorities? You need to make a list. They need to be your “big rocks.” For example, here are mine: Jesus / Me (not being selfish; narcissistic… I am talking about my health & sanity) / Diana / our children and their families / friends / relationships / career. I need to do what I can to keep those in my focus.
So, when you have your list of priorities, you need to ask yourself three questions:
What is required of me?
For each priority, you need to have a list of what needs to happen to make that priority successful
What gives me the greatest return?
High return activities. Being right Jesus is a “trickle-down” to all the other priorities. Therefore, I spend time studying my Bible. I may journal. Then, my health. I am overweight. THAT MUST DECREASE!! Yet, I am taking my vitamins. I am watching my salt intake. Get the idea. You need to see what gives you returns. Maybe some of your priorities can help your other priorities.
What gives me the greatest reward?
Put first things first. Hence, an order is important. Now, do not misunderstand me. If I make my career literally the last thing on my list, then how do I get to pay rent / buy food / etc. I need to have the discipline (there is that “E-Triangle” again) to keep focused on my priorities.
Philos0pher William James said, “The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.” If you bring your priorities into focus by answering those three questions, you will have a a much better idea of what you should overlook. Page 15. Now, if you want more details about what the answers to those three important questions could be, BUY THE BOOK (smile).
Evaluate your strengths. Take a look at your priorities and see how your strengths can help your priorities. People do not want mediocre. They want excellence. Your strengths are what makes you excellent. Knowing what your priorities are, it helps you stay focused.
MANAGING THE DISCIPLINE OF PRIORITIES
Every day I will live my life according to my priorities. What a great statement! That great statement leads to five things. And again, if you want more detail about the five things, BUY THE BOOK.
- Evaluate Priorities Daily
- Plan Your Time Carefully
- Follow Your Plan
- Delegate Whenever Possible
- Invest in the Right People Daily
Bottom line … we all have 24 hours in a day. The rich man and the poor man. We need to put the big rocks in the jar first, followed by gravel, sand, and water. Your big rocks are your priorities. When you take a look at the five things (and again, the book is excellent and will give you more insight), it is so important for you to accept the responsibility to structure your time / plan your time around your priorities. Put up the roadblocks. Block off time to “touch” each priority. On Saturday or Sunday, look at the next week and see how you are keeping the priorities the priority. When you accomplish goals related to your priorities, you should feel great and balanced. Your fatigue won’t be because of stress, it will be because your worked your butt off. It may not even be fatigue. You may be relaxed. Sometimes we confuse being tired with being relaxed.
If you want more material such as this, please contact me. I am available to be a trainer / coach / speaker. I could give you private lessons – like a “Life Coach.” I could work with your business, non-profit, schools, etc. I love doing this because as you get better, I get better. We are helping one another get better. Better people make better leaders.
My email address is: band2gether@comcast.net
Here is the information about the book.