The Answer to that Question has been debated for centuries!
If we are honest, the answer varies by the hour. For instance, I have been sick for the last week, and at this very moment, I am writing this in the middle of the night. I am an early riser, but this last week I have been a drug induced night owl. My answer at this minute to that question would be SLEEP!
Honestly, although I can not tell you that I have really enjoyed the graveyard shift, it has led me to some eye opening self introspection. I realized that one thing that matters to me is that I want my efforts to actually count.
Lets face it, nobody wants to spend valuable time on things that have no value to anyone. Sure, doing laundry may feel like that at times, but that is not what I am talking about.
What I am referring to is spending efforts on a project that can make positive changes in someone’s life. Things like taking time to help stock your churches food pantry, helping a child living in poverty learn to read, helping a single mom learn skills to get a better job, you get the drift.
We all know that, but so few of us actually do it. We all lead busy lives, and finding time is a daily struggle. At the end of the day, many of us feel frustrated that although tasks have been accomplished, we don’t truly feel like we made a difference.
I have dreamed of the day when I could just go out and spend time helping others in a way that truly would make a difference in their lives. I bet you have too. I have a million excuses why I haven’t done that already.
During the long nights of the past week, I think I have come up with a solution to solve the problem. I just read a great ebook by Susan Scott, “Fashioning Your Best Year Ever”.
In her book, she has great suggestions for finding your priorities, setting them, and then implementing. One thing she said that struck me was:
If you aren’t committed to working toward your goals, someone will come along with the things they want you to do. They will have plenty of ideas of what you should be doing. However good those activities might be, if they don’t move you closer to the goals and dreams that are a part of your life purpose, they are not the best thing for you to be doing.
Too many times I have been guilty of letting others set my agenda to achieve their goals, and that has delegated the things that are important to me, to second place. My priorities are part of God’s plan for my life, I need to assist others with their goals, but not let their goals overshadow what I NEED to do in my life.
What am I going to do about it?
- Set one priority of my OWN for each week.
- Break my month into weeks, each with a small actionable list of goals that I can reasonably accomplish.
- Set goals, large and small, and write them down
- List what needs to be done to get to the goals
- Discover where I get the information I need to develop whatever skill I need to meet that goal
So what are you going to do? Please share ideas and comments that will get all of us closer to doing things that matter.
