"Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible". Tony Robbins
For the last 5 weeks you have been laying the ground work to define and set priorities. Setting your priorities is not the end of the process; but it is the singular key to living an intentional life. If you aren't clear on what you want from life, how can you get it?
Stephen Covey in his hugely successful book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People used a word picture that has stayed with me since reading the book in 1989. He said, imagine that a mysterious limo driver dropped you off in the center of a city that you did not know and handed you a paper map with the instructions to find your way to the airport. (Keep in mind this was before the days of personal computing devices and GPS systems.) And then imagine that no matter how hard you tired you could not find the airport. Can you picture how frustrated you would be? Than visualize how you would feel when you learned that you were in the city of Detroit and that the map was of Chicago. Whoa. No matter how organized, responsible or smartly you approached the task of getting to the airport, that map was never going to help you do it.
Setting priorities is like creating a map that will help you navigate your life and your world. Clearly stating what you want to achieve will make it easier to obtain and will make you happier in the process. Also, if and when you get side tracked, you will know it and get back on plan.
There are multiple ways to categorize your goals including basing them on Maslow's hierarchy of needs. But experience has taught me that we need to start with Lifetime Priorities. What is a Lifetime Priority? They are goals that last for the duration of your life. A Lifetime Priority for me is to have a close and loving relationship with my family. Under that global goal is daily, quarterly and even yearly goals but the overarching priority remains constant.
Week 6 Assignment: List your Lifetime Priorities.
This week list your Lifetime Priorities. You aren't necessarily looking to limit the number of priorities but these are goals that you will come back to year-after-year as you craft your life. We will drill down to a subset of goals that support these priorities but for now, compile your list of Lifetime Priorities.
Hugs,
C