Setting priorities: how to turn your life into a fascinating adventure

Why make room to set priorities?

Do you know those moments when life suddenly falls into place: after some digging and searching you send off your proposal and a relieved colleague replies, “Thanks for the support, that’s exactly what I needed.” And at the same time, there are all those other moments when you struggle to get through your to-do list and wonder in the evening what on earth you have been doing all day, and why you never manage to get out with friends at the weekend anymore. Many people are so caught up in the battle with time that they no longer make room to keep their body fit, their social network warm, and their time spent meaningful. Yet all of these play a role in an enjoyable life. That is why it makes sense to pause regularly and survey the whole of your life, and plan accordingly.

How to get started?

You start with what you truly want to mean and accomplish in your life, what is genuinely important to you. And then, per role (father/mother, friend, colleague, member of…), you look at which goals are on the table. A weekly overview, planning, and evaluation makes it possible to experience your life less fragmented, to take steps in the direction you want to go, and to align clearly with others.

Stephen Covey wrote an entire book about it (First Things First, published by Simon & Schuster, 1994).

Here are the main lines if you want to get started:

• Write down in about ten sentences what is of essential importance to you in life, what you want to stand for. It is the start of a mission statement, without having to be final or complete, and it asks for regular revision.
• List the roles you currently play in your life, both professional and private. Limit this list to about seven roles to keep it manageable. Then add one more role: the one in which you take care of renewing your physical, social, mental, and spiritual needs.
• For each role, check what your goals are for the coming week.
• Curious to see how all of this fits on a single A4 page? Check the blank weekly planner in the book.

Finally: after the first week, it is good to evaluate the past week and learn from your experiences before you look ahead again. Every week a little less foolish.

Connecting Communication and choices

Connecting Communication helps people get clear, in any moment, about what matters to them, to make room for conscious choices, and to find the words to discuss this with others. In our Connecting Leadership trainings, we translate this way of thinking to the reality of people in leadership roles. Leaders, besides their own needs, also have to take the interests of the organisation and their team members into account in a crucial way. In moments when they are tempted by “doing it alone is faster,” reality catches up with them without mercy. The guiding principle “together you go further” calls for a different approach, one that pays attention to your own priorities and those of others. In that process of alignment, it comes down to honest words and genuine listening: first to the voice of your own conscience, so you can speak openly, and then to the voice of the other person.

Interested in taking a training with us? Have a look at what we offer in the coming period or contact us with your question.