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Small Business Articles from Make-it-Fly®
 Big
Rocks: Prioritizing Made Easy
By Victoria Munro
Printable version
Growing a business, keeping a competitive
edge and getting everything done can be tough. We often
seem to need more hours than there are in a day. As
a result, things that are really important easily get
neglected. Spending time with family and friends and
making time to take care of yourself often get squeezed
out. Living a more balanced,
healthy life and getting important things done
is possible, but you may need to make some changes.
Time is the
most precious and expendable resource you have.
When you spend it, it’s spent—you can’t
retrieve it when it’s gone. There’ll always
be a temptation to think there simply isn’t enough
time. Today, this is magnified by the fact that we’re
constantly exposed to a seemingly limitless array of
distracting opportunities and ways to use our time.
Identifying what’s really
important to you and putting your priorities in order
is the solution.
Most of us have heard the illustration
of this principle by a professor who challenged his
students to fit a given pile of rocks into a jar. When
they failed, he demonstrated how putting the big rocks
into the jar first, and then filling the remaining space
with small rocks, allowed them all to fit. To get what’s
most important to us done and enjoy a more balanced
life, we need to recognize and take care of our ‘big
rocks’ first.
Three Keys to Care for Your ‘Big
Rocks’
| 1. |
Look
After Your Company’s Most Valuable Asset—You!
Small business owners are very good at a lot of
things, but taking time to care for themselves
often isn’t one of them. You need time to
stay physically, emotionally, spiritually, socially
and mentally healthy. Plan time to exercise, enjoy
a stimulating hobby, have some fun, or just allow
yourself some down time to rest, reflect and regroup.
Ask yourself:
“Why did I start this business in the first
place?”
“What can I do now to take better care of
myself?”
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| 2. |
Remember
Who is Most Important to You
When people look back at the end of their lives,
family and friends are what usually matter the
most. Schedule time with those you love when you’re
fresh and alert—too often they only get
what’s left of us after a tiring day. Keep
in mind that the sacrifices you make as a business
owner often affect your family too.
Ask yourself:
“Who means the most to me?”
“What can I do to make time with those I
care about?”
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| 3. |
Focus
on the Highest Priority in Your Business
In our fast-paced, high-stress, information-laden
world, busyness easily becomes the norm. Time
spent just putting out fires can eat up a day.
Keeping in mind what is most important for the
business and focusing on that can help keep busyness
at bay. Before you start in the morning, list
your tasks for the day and then prioritize them
with your main goal in mind. Write out the highest
priority for your business this week and post
it where you’ll see it often.
Ask yourself:
“What is the number one goal for my business
right now?”
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There really are enough hours in the day,
but in reality you probably won’t get everything
done. So schedule your ‘big
rocks'—those things most important to you and
your business—on your calendar first. Then
let the ‘small rocks’—those things
that need to be done to keep your business running smoothly—fill
in the remaining time. You’ll be glad you did.
And you’ll enjoy a more balanced life.
(685 words)
© 2005-2008 Victoria Munro.
Click here
for printable version.
About the Author: Victoria Munro is
co-founder (along with husband Dave Block) of Make-it-Fly®
LLC, a company dedicated to creating success for
small-business owners through creatively designed programs
and tools. Victoria has started and run nine different
businesses. To receive FREE business success articles
with tips to help you with your business, sign up for
their award-winning ezine, “In-Flight Refueling,”
at: www.Make-it-Fly.com,
and receive a free copy of the eBook, Get
More Done in Less Time: 101 Quick and Easy Time Tactics
& Tips.
You’re welcome to “reprint”
this article in your ezine, print publication
or on your website, as long as it remains complete and
unaltered (including the “about the author”
info at the end). Please send a copy of your reprint
to info@make-it-fly.com.
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