The Importance of Setting Priorities

Hi, Debbi Mack here, and I’m going to talk today about the importance of setting priorities.

These days, we have a lot of information coming at us very fast and it’s really hard sometimes to know what to do and where to do it to get the most out of your interactions with people online and the most information that you need. So it’s important to set priorities in terms of what you want to read, where you want to spend your time, what you’re going to do. And I’ve had to learn this because, as a writer, my time is extremely important.

I have to put time into my craft. I have to put time into marketing, and I have to put time into just not doing things, because if I’m on 24/7, I’m going to burn out. So setting priorities is one of the most important things you can do, and I’m going to come up with a list of tips for doing that.

Another thing that’s important when you’re setting priorities is remembering that motion is not the same as achievement. What I’m trying to say is that simply because you’re moving or doing something doesn’t mean you’re accomplishing anything. What you need to do is focus on the things that you really want to do and make them a priority in your life and do them. Otherwise you’ll find yourself scattered doing 20 different things that may or may not be helping you further your goal.

I’ve been transcribing some of my old journals and when I look at them, I’m amazed at how confused I was about what I wanted to do and how I wanted to do it. And I kept making lists, over and over, trying to list out pros and cons and what would be better, when sometimes all you need to do is ask yourself, “What do I really want?” and get at the heart of what it is you want to do and take the steps you need to do it.

It can be as simple as having a notebook, keeping a journal, writing down what you’ve done that day, what you hope to do over the next few days, what you would like to do by the end of the month … that sort of thing. Setting achievable goals and going after them.

But the first thing — first things first — is to know that motion is not the same as achievement. To know that simply taking an action isn’t going to get you closer to your goal unless that action is calculated to get you toward the goal you’re aiming at.

In other words, it has to be a meaningful action, it has to be purposeful. You need to live your life with intention I think is what I’m saying. Intention is the word I’m looking for. Hunting for.

In any event, the thing I always like to think about is what this lawyer I used to work with would say. He would say, “When you’re up to your ass in alligators, it’s easy to forget that you came to drain the swamp.” And I like that expression so much, because these days we have so much information and so many experts — so-called experts — out there telling us, “Here’s the best way to do X, Y, or Z,” and who can you believe? What can you do?

I don’t know, but you can’t do everything. And sometimes you simply have to figure out what works for you, do that thing, and proceed from there. And drain the swamp, so to speak. So, those are my thoughts for today, and I’ll try to come up with something more in terms of advice, tips, ways to go about doing this that have worked for me, what hasn’t worked for me. And I’ll see you next time. Thanks.

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