Our Priorities…

“I’m keenly aware of the Principle of Priority, which states (a) you must know the difference between what is urgent and what is important, and (b) you must do what’s important first.” Author Steven Pressfield.

Priorities define a person – they tell you who he or she is. They offer what is valuable to the individual. We talk a lot about priorities, but ultimately, these life-changing essentials are really drawn down to a couple of things: what we want and what we’re willing to exchange or sacrifice for it.

The problems we have today are unique in history in that they are not brought about by scarcity, but by manipulation. Many of us no longer seem to strive for a solid set of priorities based on character or morality, but more on perceived needs. Our forefathers thought of priorities in terms of security, land, water, and family. We’ve added, ipods, nice cars, Sunday sports, and food stamps, and a great many of us are participants in a gamble we have made with ourselves – spending the majority of our lives not doing what we want, on the bet that we’re buying ourselves the freedom to do it sometime in the future. We call that prioritizing but to me it seems more like playing roulette. I’m reminded of the quote by the writer Hemal Jhaveri: “Do not postpone what’s important to you simply because others don’t share your priorities.” 

It’s not arrogant to choose priorities and keep them, it’s irresponsible not to – in business, government and personal relationships. But it’s easy to fall into that trap where business enterprise becomes your priority and your loved ones become accessories. It should be the other way around. I’m reminded of the quote by Robert Louis Stevenson; “Perpetual devotion to what a man calls his business, is only to be sustained by perpetual neglect of many other things.” 

You know what gives you a real sense of priority – death. Being a witness to it or suffering a near miss by it. Suddenly things become a lot clearer. A brush with death is a real eye-opener in terms of priorities. The problem with that opportunity is the uncertainty of a “brush” and a “hit.”

As far as priorities go, I could take lessons from my cat. The only thing he worries about is what’s happening right at this moment. Aahhh, for that kind of focused serenity… As he watches me run around in circles during the day I’m certain he’s thinking, “You can only wash one paw at a time, dude.”

The more challenging our life is, the more our priorities are reduced – while the New York housewife is consumed with beauty appointments, children’s school and recreational activities, lunch with the girls, and afternoon Pilates, the Afghanistan street beggar is concerned eating something today. There are those people who know the price of everything and the value of nothing. I’ll leave you with a quote by Thoreau: “It’s not enough to be busy, so are the ants.”

About Author

Jeri Pearson

Jeri is the News Director for Pulse Multi-Media and Editor of The Polk County Pulse. She has 10 years of experience in community focused journalism and has won multiple press association awards.

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