day 1144: Priority Shifts

"Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus."

Sometimes it is better to face it than to deny it; work can become all-consuming. It happens to the best of us. We have priorities and we reset our priorities over and over. God first, family second, work third. And then what happens is that someone who cares for us either gently (or angrily) points out that "we've done it again" and our priorities have turned back into, work first...work second...and work third. I've had it happen to me so many times in my career that I can't count the conversations and the looks in the mirror. I also see it happening around me all the time. Right now I have a very good friend who is all-consumed with work. He loves the job and company so he is happy and his wife and kids are happy that he is happy, but everyone knows that this period of never letting the Blackberry out of his hand or not having anything to talk about other than work, just can't go on forever. But, yet it goes on and on and before long years have passed. Why is it that we let our work take over our lives? The same work that we can't wait to retire from or get a vacation away from, we allow to creep in and infest every waking moment and thought? It's almost self-punishment, but I would venture to say that nearly all of us have had this happen to us, more than once. Last year a young man, who is wise beyond his age, asked me what to do to keep from having work take over his life. My advice was that because work is always additive (more to do, more to take on, etc.) that thinking that one can subtract work and fill the glass with something else will never succeed. Instead, other things need to be poured into the life glass that are important enough to displace work. Like the glass that is already full, drop some pebbles in to get rid of some of the water.

As believers we have the great additive to displace our obsession with work. Our minds that are full and flowing with thoughts about our jobs need to be freed by adding in other thoughts. God calls this prayer. Read along in 1 Thessalonians: "Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." Note, "never stop praying". If you suffer from the all-consuming obsession of work and you find yourself caught in the priority spiral of work first and all other second, then begin to replace the obsessive thoughts with prayer and watch what happens. Start today with the top of your prayer list being a request to God to have His thoughts and His words replace the thoughts of work and then say that prayer over and over throughout the day. God wants us all-consumed with Him first and from there He will take good care over of us and over our work. There is no better time that today to let God be the one who rearranges our priorities.

Reference: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (New Living Translation)

day 1066: How Many #1's?

"But seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" 

Maybe it is because of our short attention span or because we just can't be satisfied with only one thing being important at a time, but we seem to like to have multiple number #1 priorities...all at the same time.  How can this be?  Science tells us that our brain, as much as we would like to believe that we can think about more than one thing at a time, can only focus and think about one, yes an absolute one subject at a time.  So, how can we have more than one #1 priority at the same time?  We can't in reality.  Companies and people have to make a choice and when they are honest about it, there is only one #1 at a time.  So, how do we make sure that we get it all done and in the right order?  It takes clear thinking, ruthless priority setting and discipline to ensure that we we can get our priority work done and make it seem to others that we can indeed focus on multiple projects and achieve across many objectives simultaneously.  But, we need to be careful about how we throw around "This is our #1 priority".  When someone hears that and takes it to heart then they will watch, listen and evaluate whether that is the truth or not.  It's a high bar to live up to, so let's be careful about how cavalierly we throw around this statement.

Followers of Jesus know what we were told about what our #1 priority must be.  "Seek first the Kingdom of God..."  Jesus didn't give us a bunch of #1's to squabble about.  His Kingdom sits front and center, or should sit there in our lives.  All else becomes #2.  He goes on to tell us that if we do see His Kingdom first that all else will fall into place.  It sounds so simple, but our nature and the world we live in wants us to always have a bunch of #1's!  Today, we have choices to make.  Can we make those decisions today with Him as our sole #1 priority?

Reference: Matthew 6:33 (New Living Translation)

day 986: A1

"Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives."

Have you ever been to a time management class where they teach you to make a to-do list and and then place an "A" next to the most important items, then a "B" next to the next set on the importance scale, then a "C" and a "D"? After you do all of those then you can note "A1", "A2"....."B1, B2"...and on and on and you do know that you aren't even supposed to pay attention to the "C's and D's"? That is the drill. It does make you better organized and more productive so it is a good skill to develop. And the drill is good for the priorities of life too. The question always is though how is is that we know what are the "A's"? At work it is always the balance between urgent and important. Sometimes the urgent takes over, but if we make that the priority standard then we end up chasing short-term tasks vs. also seeing the long-term strategic needs. If we err the other way then we end up looking over the horizon and missing the short-term, ultimately not getting much done. So, yes it is a balance.

As believers we need to also factor in that we have another higher priority that must influence our to-do list. Galatians 5:22 tells us, "Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives." We have to be sure that we get our "A1" right first and once we have that at the top of the list then from there "A2" and on and on will fall into place. So today as you sit down to look at that list in front of you, take a moment to be sure that your "A1" is living in the Spirit and allowing the Spirit to lead across all parts of our lives. That is the "A1" that we all should be sure we have in life and at work.

Reference: Galatians 5:22 (New Living Testament)

day 742: The Masthead

"You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul,and all your mind."

While certainly not as prevalent and as important as it once was, the corporate stationary still remains and decisions get made as to who goes on the masthead and who doesn't. If not stationary, then the same decisions have to be made about the website. Most companies put the most senior person at the top and then work down from there until there is a cut-off. While not really that important, how the names are listed and who is there and who isn't can cause its own set of conversations and consternation. I was in a recent planning meeting for a conference and even in that session there was a discussion about being sure that the names were listed in an order that wouldn't upset anyone and the best way to so was to once again use highest ranking titles at the top. What this says is that we still, in a time when we should be able to see beyond titles, we still default into putting the most obvious things at the top and whether or not it is the best way, it is where we end up.

As we attempt to figure out in our own work and personal lives where our priorities should be and what goes at the to of our "masthead", we have to be sure that we are keeping what is really important at our own personal top. Of course it is so obvious, but we just continue to allow God to slip down the list. In fact, it is so hard for us to lock in and keep our priorities right that Jesus Himself had to tell us what we must do and how we have to lead our lives. Today, imagine that you are creating your personal masthead. What and who would be at the top? As we start this week, let's ensure our priorities are in the order that we can line up the rest of our lives to work and live to bringing glory to God in all that we do.

Reference: Matthew 22:37 (New Living Testament)

day 443: Primary Concerns

More than many times I have had to counsel others on and remind myself of priorities. It was Covey who said something to the affect of, "The main thing to remember is that the main thing is the main thing." Work is so full of moving priority targets that it is tough to keep them straight. We are bombarded by new information each day and there is always another big or good idea around the corner, not to mention the constant set of problems that have to be solved. It is hard to stay set on on our primary concerns and stick with them consistently. Yet, this is the foundation for success in our work. Those who are great at keeping to their priorities and not stopping until the job is fully completed are the ones who continue to be given more and rise to the top. To be the best we can be, we need to continue to grow and develop in the area of priority setting and priority management. The best leader I ever worked with could boil down the business into 3-5 priorities and regardless of what was brought to him, he would pull the issue, the problem or the opportunity through those 3-5 filters and if the new things didn't match up to the priorities he would shoo them away. If they did fit, he would get them done. He was amazing that way. We could all benefit in this area. As believers God tells us what our first and foremost primary concern should be and he promises us if we stay focused and stick with it that all the rest will follow. We read in Matthew 6:33, "He will give you all you need from day to day if you live for Him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern." Today, we might be bouncing around a number of priorities and can't seem to lock in on what we need to do. Let's try regrouping around our primary concern first and then looking to Him to help sort out the rest. We may find that our priority setting skills will get a lot better very quickly.

Reference: Matthew 6:33 (New Living Testament)

day 295: The Main Thing...

I was in meetings yesterday with a very talented and accomplished business entrepreneur who runs a very successful company. He also happens to be a strong believer and leads his company with God-driven and faith-filled principles. As we were talking he referenced a few times a quote that he had heard a long time ago, that was later said now broadly attributed to Stephen Covey; "The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing". What a simple concept, but such a hard thing to do. What I noticed about when this CEO would say this was that he was talking out load to himself as much as he was talking to me and the other people in the room. This simple statement is not only a philosophical statement, it is also a constant priority reminder and gut check on ensuring that you are doing the right thing first, the right thing most and the right thing for the right reasons. It is a natural tendency to drift in our work. There are so many different priorities that are put to us daily. There are the priorities that come from our boss, those that come from our peers, those that come from our customers and those that are our own priorities that we want to do ourselves. So the main thing can drift and the main thing can get out of focus and the main thing can slip down the list into one of the other things. So, not only do we need to know what the main thing is, we may have to say it out loud to ourselves a few times a day, to remind ourselves what that main thing is and to keep that main thing, the main thing. As believers God also tells us through His word what is our main thing. He says in Proverbs 4:25; "Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you." God is saying to us, don't let yourself waiver or become unfocused, just keep the main thing, the main thing. And we know what that main thing is as we bring our purpose to our work. Our main thing is to bring glory to God in all that we do. Today, remind yourself of the main thing and see if you can keep it the main thing all this day and don't hesitate to say out loud a few times as a reminder, "the main thing is to keep the main thing, the main thing".

Reference: Proverbs 4:25 (New Living Testament)

day 232: All Consuming

Sometimes it is better to face it than to deny it; work can become all-consuming. It happens to the best of us. We have priorities and we reset our priorities over and over. God first, family second, work third. And then what happens is that someone who cares for us either gently (or angrily) points out that "we've done it again" and our priorities have turned back into, work first...work second...and work third. I've had it happen to me so many times in my career that I can't count the conversations and the looks in the mirror. I also see it happening around me all the time. Right now I have a very good friend who just started a new job and he is already all-consumed with work. He loves the new job and company so he is happy and his wife and kids are happy that he is happy again, but everyone knows that this honeymoon period of never letting the Blackberry out of his hand or not having anything to talk about other than work, just can't go on for long. I'm even giving him the six-month grace period to get settled and then if things aren't different, it will be time for the "talk". Why is it that we let our work take over our lives? The same work that we can't wait to retire from or get a vacation away from, we allow to creep in and infest every waking moment and thought? It's almost self-punishment, but I would venture to say that nearly all of us have had this happen to us, more than once. Last year a young man, who is wise beyond his age, asked me what to do to keep from having work take over his life. My advice was that because work is always additive (more to do, more to take on, etc.) that thinking that one can subtract work and fill the glass with something else will never succeed. Instead, other things need to be poured into the life glass that are important enough to displace work. Like the glass that is already full, drop some pebbles in to get rid of some of the water. As believers we have the great additive to displace our obsession with work. Our minds that are full and flowing with thoughts about our jobs need to be freed by adding in other thoughts. God calls this prayer. Read along in 1 Thessalonians: "Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." Note, "never stop praying". If you suffer from the all-consuming obsession of work and you find yourself caught in the priority spiral of work first and all other second, then begin to replace the obsessive thoughts with prayer and watch what happens. Start today with the top of your prayer list being a request to God to have His thoughts and His words replace the thoughts of work and then say that prayer over and over throughout the day. God wants us all-consumed with Him first and from there He will take good care over of us and over our work. There is no better time that today to let God be the one who rearranges our priorities.

Reference: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (New Living Testament)

day 8: Your Last Day

There’s the old saying, “no one ever says on their deathbed, oh, I wish I had one more day in the office”. That statement is filled with much truth, but it doesn’t help us when we know that we have many priorities stacked up in front of us and because of deadlines, market needs, demands of bosses, etc., we feel we have too little time so we prioritize work above family, friends and sometimes God. It is not surprising that when this happens we end up in not such a happy place. We are given a good word in Ecclesiastes that helps puts our work in context. No where in the Bible will you see that we are to toil at our second best or not give it our all in anything we do. Verse 10 of Ecclesiastes Chapter 9 says, “Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom”. This verse says to me that we are to approach our work with a passion and joy as if it is a gift we are given that upon death will be taken away from us. The time we have on earth to work we are to do our best and make the most of our efforts. Notice that the verse does not say, “do it better”, or “put your work above all else”. It just says, “do well”. The verse could also be interpreted that we are to ignore work, knowledge, planning and wisdom of none it will be there for us at death. I could follow this interpretation if I weren’t faced with Monday mornings each week. Work is a reality and what we must do is not ignore the fact that it is a vital and important part of our lives, but instead ensure that we do well in our work so that we honor what we have been given and make the most of the days we have here on this earth. When we do this, we also honor God. When we honor God, our priorities are in the right place. So today when you struggle across competing priorities and when it looks like work is winning out again, stop for a moment and try to put it all in context and think through how “well” you are doing with within your work? If you can say, “Yes, I am doing well” then you have done what is asked of you and the priorities and demands just might take care of themselves.



Reference: Ecclesiastes 9:10 (New Living Testament)