Knowing (and Listing) Your Priorities
What is important to you?
What do you truly desire above all else? What are the things in your life which you absolutely must spend time doing? What people do you always want to be around? The answers to those questions and others will reveal what you should be prioritizing as important in your life.
Chances are, you didn't mention too many work-related activities and tasks as top priorities. Most people would rather spend their time with friends, family, and other loved ones, as opposed to working or running a business. However, if you don't prioritize the right amount of time on the correct activities concerning your career or business, you may not earn the level of income you need to enjoy your free time away from work.
This situation begs the question, "How do you know what to prioritize as more important than other tasks, behaviors, and activities to get the most out of life?"
The answer lies in performing a task that will identify things you need to recognize as important in your personal and work lives. However, rather than simply writing down the things that are important to you in general, you will take a look at your personal life and work-life separately.
Make 2 Lists
Get 2 separate sheets of paper. On the top of one write "Work Priorities", and your second sheet should be labeled "Personal Priorities". Now comes the fun part. Without worrying about what is more or less important, write down whatever comes to mind. Don't worry about starting with the biggest priority and working your way down in order of importance. Just brainstorm furiously, writing down everything and anything that is a priority or needs to be a priority that you are not currently devoting enough time to.
What you list will depend upon what your goals are for this year, next year, 5 years from now, 10 years from now, and when you expect to retire. Think about those activities and skills you need to improve your productivity at work, so you get the most out of the time you spend working on your career and financial goals.
Do the same thing with your personal life. You are probably going to write down "friends and family" as something that is very important to you. Break that down further. Separately list every individual you enjoy spending time with. If owning a nice home is important to you, include it as a personal priority. Anything that you prioritize which is not work-related needs to be on your personal priority list.
Now take a look at your lists. Regarding each item in turn, place it above or below the other items on your list, with your most important priorities at the top. Over time these priorities may change, so you want to practice this exercise once a year. Once you prioritize the things that are important and necessary in both your work and personal lives, you need to know how to spend your time wisely, balancing your daily activities. Let's take a look at how you can accomplish that.
Important Note:
Don't forget to prioritize self-care. We will take a look at self-care activities and tips you should be practicing at the end of this report. At this point, just be sure to make taking care of yourself a priority at work, and during your free time.
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You cannot know everything there is to know about how to get where you want to be in life. While it’s possible to learn the needed skills, this will take time and likely a lot of money. Instead, what if you had someone (or a group of people) who can help guide you to success?
A mentor is someone who currently is where you want to be. The relationship you have with a mentor can be an official one, or it can be informal such as following in the footsteps of someone you admire. Mentors have experience and have gone through growing pains towards success. They will know what kinds of training you may need or skills to develop.