Today is a great day! A day filled with urgency and anticipation. An incredible day of opportunity, and, not surprisingly, many people will miss it.
The day will be consumed by the pressing importance of daily activity, and opportunities to learn, grow, contribute, share, love, laugh, and make an impact will be missed.
When I was in high school, I worked for my dad. One morning I was bemoaning the fact I had to go to work, and declared the day a waste of my summer. My dad, with a slight smile, looked at me and said,
“If you don’t think it’s a great day, just try missing one.”
I don’t remember my dad saying another word on our 30-minute drive to work. As he often did, he just left me to think about what he had said.
What did he mean by missing one? Was he being funny? Nah, my dad didn’t joke around. What was the message? Should I ask?
On one of our many drives to work, we were talking about my dad’s experience in the coal mines of West Virginia and in the Vietnam War. In this brief glimpse into a life he rarely talked about, dad was telling me what “missing one,” meant. He was telling me how important it was to live with urgency.
My dad was funny! He had put a lighthearted spin on the reality that our days are numbered.
The Psalmist said,
“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom."
Three strategies for living with greater urgency.
- Clarify your purpose and roles. Who and what are most important to you? Spend your time with the people and roles that are most important, and you will change the course and trajectory of your personal impact.
- Focus on being efficient with tasks and effective with people. Getting a lot of things done on your to-do list at the expense of the most important people in your life has consistently produced a life of regrets.
- Ask yourself these three questions on a regular basis.
- What do I need to do more of?
- What do I need to do less of?
- What can I stop doing? Stop wasting time and energy on things that do not reflect your highest purpose and most important roles.
Every time I review these questions, I am reminded of the simplicity and power of these strategies.
For the record, what do I need to do more of?
- Ride my bike more often
- Eat more fruits and vegetables
- Drink more water.
- Call my mom more often and compliment her excellent apple pie!
- Hug my boys every chance I get and tell them how proud I am of them.
- Give thanks every day for the blessing of a wonderful wife.
- Ask, “How can I help?.” more often.
What do I need to do less of?
- I need to eat less ice cream.
- Stop treating the one-pound bag of chips as a single serving.
- Drink less Coca Cola, but it is only $1 at McDonald’s, so I think this one will require a price increase.
What can I stop? I think I will work on not worrying so much! The only day that matters is today and God’s promises are eternal.
Make it a great day!
Take a moment and leave your thoughts. What do you need to do less of or more of? Maybe stop doing?
Great message. Pursuing your vision and focusing on high leverage activities are an important part of the journey. Great advice Jim.
Thanks Robert - I sometimes think eating ice cream is a high leverage activity! The journey is so important and the rewards are greatest when we spend our time with the people who matter most. Even in our work we have relationships that we must nurture and support more than others.