Urgent Versus Important
It is very easy to allow the urgent things in our life to get in the way of the important things. My message this week applies to every area of your life, from Woodturning to your loved ones and everything in between.
Many years ago I read an article which outlined habits of highly effective people and those articles still circulate today. One of the many things I took away from that article and implemented in my daily routine is the use of a daily list. Six out of seven of my days begin with “My List”. It’s a pretty simple very quick process. I make an unfiltered list of everything I want to get done today in no particular order. Then I add any carryover items from yesterday’s list, normally low priority items.
The next step is to prioritize my list. I’ve learned to use these filters:
Special one–time Items which absolutely positively cannot fail must be done today including appointments.Items I do every day because they are important in the long term.Items I should to do today, if at all possible.Items I would like to do today if I can find the time.
My special one–time items all get a star. Items I do every day all get a #1. Items I should do today get a number in their order of importance beginning with #2 on up. Items I would like to do today remain on the list in order to avoid “out of sight out of mind”. This whole process never takes more than five minutes as I enjoy today’s first cup of coffee. Folks who know me understand my reputation as an incredibly productive individual. The first ingredient in that formula, of course, is hard work. Couple that with an action plan which has been prioritized and you can see that your own productivity should increase dramatically.
In light of recent worldwide events, it’s pretty obvious that we are no longer living in the “Leave It to Beaver“, or “Little House On The Prairie” type of world any longer and haven’t been for some time. As responsible citizens our right to vote must be exercised. Since we live in a society with a representative government our duty is to do everything in our power to elect wise leaders. In order to do that we must show up at the polls and vote. As it turns out, this election day I will be very far from home. So my entire family participated in the early voting process here in Georgia. We cast our ballots thereby fulfilling our civic obligation. I am delighted to report to you that the polls were incredibly busy over two weeks until election day! So busy in fact, that there was a line outside of the Gwinnett County Voter Registrations and Elections Office. It is very obvious that the citizens are not happy and are showing up in huge crowds to make their voices heard.
Some of you know that sweet Janice is a nurse. Well, sweet Janice has retired and will be at all 16 woodworking shows this season. She will be demonstrating how to achieve a flawless CA finish to your small turned items in her very own booth. We would love to have you stop by and say hello when we
come to your area. We are looking forward to seeing old friends and making many new ones as this wonderful journey begins.
Because “wherever you go, there you are”
Your Friend,
Ron Brown
This is what my To–Do list looks like. You may download your on copy PDF or Excel at http://www.ronbrownsbest.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=11
It has two columns with room for numbers and space at the bottom for notes and messages which inevitably arise during the day. This is printed on standard letter sized paper, of course. I always date my list with the day of the week and the mm/dd/yyyy format also.
