Today’s Mandala Message: Prioritize Your Tasks
This week I’m working through Principle #40 from Jack Canfield’s “The Success Principles” entitled “Redefine Time”. I set my intention today to ponder what tasks are more important to me. Continuing with Monday’s reference to the post on TimelyApp.com entitled: “5 Essential Time Management Techniques”, I chose their technique #2: “Be prioritized: Rank your tasks.”
“If writing a to-do list is the first step towards better time management, prioritizing your tasks is the next. … Figure out which tasks and activities are high-value, which will have the most positive effect on you, your work, and your team. … The usefulness of prioritization can’t be overstated – without it, we often end up focusing on work that’s pressing but not actually that important, simply because a deadline is looming.”
I usually let deadlines be a determining factor in prioritizing my tasks. Over the last several years I haven’t had too many deadlines so I tended to do tasks that interested me or “screamed” the loudest, rather than ones that were pressing for other reasons (household chores, yard work, grocery shopping, and so on). For the remainder of this year I have three definitive deadlines: a Fall Equinox Fair (metaphysical fair) on August 26, set up a 28’ window display of my mandalas on October 3, and the South Town Art Walk on December 3. Prepping for those will rank higher than other tasks.
Then there are my in-definitive deadlines…ones that I arbitrarily set and can too-easily change at any time. These are more challenging for me to do and lend themselves to procrastination (updating my web site, marketing, creating a podcast, getting out a newsletter, scheduling some webinars, learn new skills, and so on). Some of these feel more like “should do’s” which makes them even less inviting to do.
I realize as I write this, and actually have sensed this for some time, that I need to have a heart-to-heart with myself to unveil what’s truly important to me. Than I can prioritize those tasks higher on the list…putting off or letting of the rest.
A good mindfulness practice would be to ponder what’s truly important to you…do that first.
So how about you? Do prioritize your tasks in order of importance to you? Which tasks do you tend to do first? Do you have a system to help you determine your priorities?
“I learned
— Dan Millman
that we can do anything,
but we can’t do everything…
at least not at the same time.
So think of your priorities
not in terms of
what activities you do,
but when you do them.
Timing is everything.”
Blessings,
Maureen
The Mandala Lady
All Things Mandalas
An Invitation
I invite you to color along with me this year as part of what I’m calling “The Year of Self-Exploration and Expansion” with all of my “Mandalas of the ___” (day, week, month, year). If you’re interested in more of a self-exploration approach to coloring, check out my “Coloring Mandalas as Meditation”. You can download this mandala at MandalaoftheWeek.com.
Mandala of the Day 