Prioritize

pri·or·i·ty

prīˈôrədē/

noun

  1. the fact or condition of being regarded as more important.

pri·or·i·tize

prīˈôrəˌtīz/

verb

  1. designate or treat (something) as more important than other things.

Most of us are pretty good at the one and pretty poor at the other.  We're super clear on what our priorities should be:

  1. God
  2. Family
  3. Friends
  4. Work
  5. etc.

We got the “noun” part of this thing down. We know how to give the right answer when we are asked about what is most important to us. The “verb” is where things really start to break down.

The reality is determined by what we do or prioritize in our life…what we actually do with our time.  If we restated our priorities based on how we prioritized our time and what we spent our time thinking about, it might look more like this:

  1. Work
  2. Money
  3. Politics
  4. Sports
  5. etc.

Despite our understanding that “He has overcome the world”, “nothing escapes His hand”, and that He is who we are supposed to prioritize first and source all our answers from, He is often the last place we turn.

We “cowboy up”, “take the bull by the horns”, or simply redouble our efforts and intentionality to power our way through our problems.  We cast our burdens on the Lord…only after we have exhausted every effort on our own part.  

We say our priorities are one thing while what we prioritize says something completely different.  The proverbs say, “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.”  

The answer to righting things and reprioritizing our lives is to break the rhythm. To stop and take stock. To honestly reflect, reaffirm your priorities, and prioritize the right things.

We do that periodically at events like our Hotel Emma Leadership Event or Lifeplan Retreat.

We do that monthly for a day at Executive Board meetings with leaders and in the monthly one-on-one coaching that comes along with that membership.

We coach a weekly rhythm change through the powerful concept of an “Ideal” to help you prioritize the best life possible aligning with your priorities.

We do that through encouraging daily tools like our “No Regrets Tool” that helps leaders focus and center themselves to begin their day.  (Let me know if you would like us to forward that to you.)

To say that we have certain priorities that don’t line up with how we prioritize our time and minds lacks integrity. When I tell my employees, children, or anyone else that is watching me more than they are listening to me, they had better see that what I am saying is aligned with how I am living.

Is it any wonder why so many that we are supposed to be leading don’t seem to follow our lead? 

Maybe it is a less a question about our priorities and more a question of how we are prioritizing our lives.  Not about whether or not we are saying the right things, but if we are actually doing them.

Consider

  • Do you know what your priorities are?
  • Does the way you are prioritizing your life line up with that?
  • What do you think it is costing you to not have those things aligned?
  • What is the next right thing you need to do about it?