The Time Expert
One
day an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students
and, to drive home a point, used an illustration those students will never
forget. As he stood in front of the
group of high-powered overachievers he said, “Okay, time for a quiz.”
Then
he pulled out a one-gallon, wide mouth Mason jar and set it on the table in
front of him. Then he 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
in the class said, “Yes.”
Then
he said, “Really?” He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of
gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in
and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the
space between the big
Then
he asked the group once more, “Is the jar full?”
By
this time the class was on to him. “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 class 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 class 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 your 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.
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