Putting First Things First

Here is a little strategy that can make a big difference in your life.  It calls for a small shift in your behavior that is worth its weight in gold.  I’m sure you’ve heard of the saying, “Put first things first.”  Well, it is this simple concept that helped all successful people to achieve their goals.  You might feel like dismissing this as overly simplistic advice, but before you do that, take a moment and consider what most of us do instead.

There are those of us who tackle things as they come in, regardless of time-sensitivity or importance.  The task might be potentially significant, such as following up on a potential sale, or it might be mundane, such as returning a phone call.  Those of us who work this way are just trying to stay on top of things.  You can probably agree that demands come at us during any given day or week in a somewhat random way.  When we handle work in the order that they come, we spend our time on tasks that are most likely not priorities.  Instead of consciously making choices and prioritizing, we let the outside world randomly dictate what we do in our day-to-day work. 

There are many other ways in which we prioritize our workloads.  Some of us have a huge to-do list that when we look at it, we decide to tackle only those tasks that seem most urgent.  But the problem is that they may seem urgent, but it may or may not have much to do with what’s truly important to our goals.  For example, in my business I could spend lots of time answering calls and emails, but if I never got round to the more challenging task of preparing business proposals, there wouldn’t be any phone calls and emails to respond to. 

Then, there are those of us who choose to do what appears to be easiest or least stressful, first.  For example, if you’re this kind of person, you may have an uncomfortable phone call to make that could secure a sale, as well as a couple of flyers or direct-mail pieces to send out.  One task is simple and mindless, whereas the other is difficult and uncomfortable.  Guess which you do first?

Furthermore, there are also those of us who waste time with simple distractions.  If you’re this kind of person, you may spend a lot of time straightening your desk, making lists, returning less than productive phone calls, or playing with your cellular phone to see what other features it might have.  If your work style fits into any of the examples mentioned thus far—don’t worry— let’s make today the day you start “putting first things first.” 

You see, subconsciously, most people avoid doing what really matters because of fear.  Fear causes the mind to worry—worry about getting rejected, or not succeeding.  When you worry, your mind spins off in a downward spiral, and for nothing, because it’s all in the mind.  You start judging everything as right, wrong, good, or bad, and you imagine the worst case scenarios, you make assumptions, and as a result, you indirectly self-sabotage—saying things, and making decisions that aren’t serving your ultimate goals.

The small change you must make is to alter your mind-set when it comes to work life, and put first things first.  To do this, you have to know your goals, and be really honest with yourself about your habits.  Then you have to work to change the habits that aren’t serving your goals.  It’s easy to run into obstacles at work, and in your mind, create scenarios that cause you to worry.  But these scenarios don’t often pan out the way you’ve pictured them.  Then, in hindsight, you wonder why you wasted time and energy on thoughts that served no greater purpose to your ultimate goals.  It would have served you better if you’d only made a conscious effort to focus your time and energy on what is most productive and potentially profitable. 

Your time is the most valuable resource.  So before you spend it, think about whether what you’re about to spend time on is contributing to your goals—or not.  The more you do this consciously, the more it will become an automatic subconscious action, and it is here in the automatic thinking that you’ll find your behavior created and controlled.

Know your priorities, and be sure your decisions are purpose-driven.  When you catch yourself answering emails instead of starting that business proposal, returning that less than productive phone call instead of that uncomfortable phone call that could secure a sale, remind yourself to “put first things first!”  No matter what kind of unproductive or unprofitable situation you may be in at that moment, this will prompt you to ask yourself what you should really be doing instead.  You may find you truly need to take a break and return with a clear mind to start that proposal, or return a few more calls to warm up to that potential sales call.  This is all very healthy because now you have a purpose even if you’re not jumping straight into what you “should” be doing.  But you’re aware and respecting the process you deserve, while putting yourself on the path to achieving your goals.

© 2008 Penny Phang.com Inc. All rights reserved.

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