Put first things first

Putting first things first is all about learning to manage ourselves to a higher level.  When you put first things first you are working by priorities and not allowing interruptions to knock you off course.
 
We all struggle with the same dilemma.  We are caught between the urgent and the important. 
 
Urgent items are things that need your immediate attention, such as a ringing phone, your phone beeping with notifications, people interrupting you, etc,
 
Important items have to deal with results.  Important items drive you to your values, goals, and overall mission. 
 
Author Peter Drucker says, “Effective people don’t solve problems - they pursue opportunities.  They feed opportunities and starve problems.” 
 
It’s not that effective people don’t have urgent things pop up, they just think in advance and act preventatively so they keep that number down. 
 
What can you do to put first things first?  Here are a couple ideas:
 

1. Identify your key roles in life (business, family - whatever comes to mind as important) and think of what you will do this week to enhance those roles. 
2. Think of 2 or 3 important results you want to get this week in each area. 
3. Block out time each day to work on these important goals and achieve them.  Once they are done, see how much time you have left over for the other stuff!

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