The one thing I’ve gotten out of the Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits is the important / unimportant vs urgent / nonurgent matrix.
Quadrant 1 (important and urgent) and Quadrant 4 (unimportant and non-urgent) are easy. Just do or don’t do them.
Quadrant 3 (unimportant but urgent) is seductive in that you get those little cheap hits of accomplishment, but best to be avoided.
The most interesting insight comes from Quadrant 2 (important but nonurgent). This is where you prepare for the future. You can put it off for a day or two with no consequences, but if you waite a couple years, you’ll be two years behind.
I used to have a bunch of “Q2” goals, but I’ve realized I just don’t have time for it. So it’s been pared down to this blog (for now), continuous improvement at work, and exercise.
Where does the family fit in? Well it doesn’t feel urgent, but when you see the kids growing up so quickly, you realize that’s a Q1 item.