LIFE MANAGEMENT
COMMENTARY ARCHIVES, 4 Aug 2009
A professor of management gave a lecture on time management. He filled a mason jar with a dozen fist-sized rocks, until no more would fit. He asked his students,
"Is this jar full?" and all shouted "Yes!"
Then he took some gravel from under the desk to fill the empty spaces and asked again, "Is it full now?"
Some said, "probably not."
He filled the space between the gravel with sand, and finally poured water into the jar to the brim.
"What is the lesson of this?" he asked.
A student answered, "No matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard, you can always fit one more thing into it."
The professor replied, "No, the main lesson is that unless you put the big rocks in first, you’ll never get them in at all."
What are the "big rocks" in our life?
This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 4 Aug 2009.
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One Response to “LIFE MANAGEMENT”
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COMMENTARY ARCHIVES:
Dietrich,
Many years ago you mentioned to me the “big rock” problem when we were working on the nuclear weapons book.
Last night I recalled it and raised it when trying to work out a problem with a friend.
I mention this to you as a point of amusement.
Your words took on life again in that instance.
Today I was glad to find it on the web. ( http://www.transcend.org/tms/2009/08/life-management/ )
– Ike