The third habit, Put First Things First, could not have come at a better time. My current plate consists of being a husband, bonus dad, homeowner, second grade teacher, church life group leader, small business owner, graduate school student and a fitness addict. Balancing all of these responsibilities is a lot fun but can feel very heavy at times. I recently heard this bible verse the other day that helped me learn to manage the multiple responsibilities, “ (Matthew 25:14-15For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability.” In other words, I’ve been entrusted with the ability to endure many talents and/or responsibilities. This understanding gives me the peace and motivation to not only endure but to succeed in all of them. “I spend my time on things that are most important. This means I say not to things I know I should not do. I set priorities, make a schedule, and follow my plan. I am disciplined and organized.” (Covey, 2014)
Time Management
Time management is something is something I’ve been trying to improve on throughout the years. Through my faith and the help of my wife, I’ve been slowly but surely dropping habits that are not aligned with my purpose. The removing of these habits has given me the endurance and energy to get up every morning with a sense of purpose and drive. On a regular work week (Monday-Friday), I do my best to get to the gym at least 2-3 days out the week. In order to accomplish this, I wake up at 3:30am two days out of the work week and get to the gym by 4am. I leave around 5am, get home, get ready for work, eat breakfast and head to work around 6:15am. My drive to work is about 25 minutes so during this time, I love to listen to some type of inspiration such as an audio, an online message from my church or music. I normally arrive at my classroom around 6:45am. School starts at 7:45am so it gives me about an hour to prepare for class. After work, I come straight home to eat and complete any pending homework assignments for graduate school. About 1-2 days out of the work week, I try to give myself a few nights off with my family, sometimes it’s taking my bonus daughter to soccer practice or watching our favorite shows on DVR with my wife and daughter. I do my best to not do school work on the weekends so my wife and I can have quality time, so I can attend my church life group on Saturday mornings, work on our small business with my wife or have get-togethers with friends. There are many days that I feel drained and tired, I keep reminding myself that it’s ok to shut it down from time to time and rest. Rest is definitely part of the “prioritizer” quadrant and necessary to have great health.
Small Pebbles
As I state above, the dropping of bad habits has allowed me to be more efficient with my time and the management of it. I may not get to everything I planned for the day but I can rest easy at night that I gave my best effort and as I tell my students on a daily basis, “all I care about is that you do your best. I’m not looking for perfection, I’m looking for your best.” It’s all about priorities and to me it’s my faith, health, family, business (finances & small business), teaching and graduate school.
Commitment
I commit to not allowing the small pebbles, old habits, poor choices, excuses and procrastination get me off track from my goals.
Teaching the Habit
Putting first things first is a great skill I can teach to my second graders. Second graders tend to prioritize their time with socializing, what others are doing and just being kids.When these bad habits come first instead of their school work, their school day suffers. It’s a habit that I try to teach on a daily basis by modeling what they should be doing by constantly repeating steps, verbalizing what to do after they finish their work, a reward system for following directions and communicating with parents the importance of structure at home. During back to school night in a few weeks, I will teach the habit to parent’s as well as they are in control at home so they will hear the importance of coming to school prepared (good night's sleep, homework completion, nutrition, etc.).
References
Covey, S. (2008). The Leader in Me (2nd Edition ed.). New York, New York: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks.