Prioritize

Setting priorities.  To prioritize things means to lend great importance to one thing over something else.  We prioritize our time.  We prioritize our money.  We prioritize our relationships and our attention.  When I look at priorities, I usually see two issues.  The first issue usually centers around what we say is important.  For each person this is different.  But you can usually tell what a person deems important by seeing where they spend their time and their money.  I choose to spend my time with my family.  Why?  Because they are important to me.  I value their time and the time I get to spend with them.  I've had to learn hard lessons since having kids that sometimes I have to give up some of the things I want to do in order to prioritize my time with them.  There are other relationships in my life that are important, but none that are more important to me than those with my family.  Sometimes I have to remind myself that if I can committed to them, then I have to commit the time needed to those relationships for them to be successful.  If I tell my son that he is important, I need to throw the football with him.  If I tell my daughter that she is important to me, I have to help her paint an octopus for her science project.  If I tell my wife she is important then I need to make sure I spend some one on one time with her.  My actions have to match my words.  If they do not, then I allow my priorities to shift.

The second issue I see with priorities is that setting priorities usually means I have to give something else up.  And, it means I probably have to sacrifice something that while I may like it or enjoy it, it no longer fits with my priorities.  If my family is that important, it means that my free time (away from work) has to be spent with them.  Sure, I'd love to play on my phone or go ref some soccer games.  But time, no matter how hard we try, is always finite.  When it comes to my family, those sacrifices are necessary.  So many times we want to "have it all".  While there may be some people out there than can somehow have it all, most of us are in the same boat where we have to make choices.  I would rather sacrifice for my priorities now than try to make something up later in life.  And here is the key point that I believe: the sacrifice is almost always worth it!!  It might not seem like it in the moment, but I have had very few experiences where I have regretted keeping my priorities sacred.  As you go through this week, what will your priorities be?  How will you ensure those priorities are not swallowed up by other things?  Finally, what might you need to sacrifice this week to ensure you meet those priorities?   

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