Are You Following Your Top Priorities?

Recently, I realized that there's a big difference between our priorities and our values. Oftentimes, you set your priorities based on external requirements (what does the world expect from you?). Values are the criteria by which you allocate resources and make decisions.  Your hold them high or low at a personal level.  You act them out.  You don't write them down in a bullet point list (like priorities).  But it's your values that determine the actual order of priorities you follow in life.

So, instead of trying to list priorities in order, I grouped them into Top, Secondary and Elective categories.  My tops are health and family.  They give me my life, happiness and are the basis of my energy and effectiveness.  

My secondary priorities are career and service.  They are secondary because my top priorities are not dependent on them.  Sure, if your career fails, your family suffers -- but you don't lose them.  My elective priorities are sports and hobbies.  I follow them when I have the time as they are luxuries to me.

After doing the exercise, I realized that too often, I've let a secondary priority trump a top priority, which risks killing the golden goose!  I let career take a greater value than health in several situations, skipping exercise or traveling beyond my body's capability.  Then there are the sacrifices I’ve asked my family to make for my career or my service to others.  In some cases they are necessary and the family is up for it, but at what point am I getting it wrong? 

Here's my takeaway.  I'll never let my secondary priorities trump my top ones, unless it's a pretty extreme situation.  Sure, we want them all to work out, but there will be times when you have to look at things over the long view and say, "No, my family comes first."  You need to act like you believe, and find the time for check ups, proper exercise and time with family.  Each time you say to yourself, "I don't have enough time," look around for a pesky secondary priority gone out-of-control.  It's just waiting for you to put it in its place. 

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Comments

[Patrick Allmond]

Tip for you my friend: Don't "find the time for check ups, proper exercise and time with family". Hard code those things on your calendar as weekly repeating appointments. Example: That is what I do with exercise. If I were to show you my calendar you'd see that MWF from 6-8 are gym time. I schedule other things around them. If a client wants to meet at 6:30 on Monday they can't. There is already an appointment there. Do that same practice with family time, etc. Those are you big rocks and they get on your calendar before anything.