Defining Priorities

Defining Priorities

Prioritizing means “taking conscious control of one’s choices and deciding to spend more
time on the activities and tasks that are important and valuable, and less time on the ones
that are not....” The importance of prioritizing tasks or activities is best driven home by the
popular ‘pebbles and jar’ parable.
One day, an expert in time management was speaking to a group of managers. As he
stood in front of the group of high-powered over-achievers he said, “Okay, time for a quiz”
and he pulled out a one-gallon, wide-mouth mason jar and set it on the table in front of him.
He also produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time,
into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked,
“Is this jar full?” Everyone yelled, “Yes.”
The time management expert replied, “Really?” He reached under the table and pulled out
a bucket of gravel. He dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel
to work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks. He then asked the group
once more, “Is the jar full?”
“Probably not,” one of them answered.
“Good!” he replied. He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He
started dumping the sand in the jar and it went into all of the spaces left between the rocks
and the gravel. Once more he asked the question, “Is this jar full?”
“No!” the audience shouted.
Once again he said, “Good.” Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in
until the jar was filled to the brim. Then he looked at the spectators and asked, “What is the
point of this illustration?”
One eager beaver raised his hand and said, “The point is, no matter how full your schedule
is, if you try really hard you can always fit some more things in it!”
“No,” the speaker replied, “that’s not the point. The truth this illustration teaches us is, “If
you don’t put the big rocks in first, you’ll never get them in at all.
What are the ‘big rocks’ in your life, time with loved ones, your faith, your education, your
dreams, a worthy cause, teaching or mentoring others?
Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first or you’ll never get them in at all. So, tonight, or
in the morning, when you are reflecting on this short story, ask yourself this question, “What
are the ‘big rocks’ in my life?” Then, put those in your jar first.