Position, set an objective and a short-term plan and start doing what you wish to achieve

Yearend is approaching. It would be time to summarize what 2009 brought us.

I did so a couple of weeks ago and it was really good to compare what i expected from 2009 and what were the things i actually achieved. It was good because i mostly achieved all i wanted to except for one thing. By mere coincidence the very next day i met some strangers who made me think it forward and this is what i wanna suggest for you as well. So starting at the first point.

1. Did you achieve all you wanted to this year?
2. What is your long term plan? Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?
3. What do you plan to do for that in 2010?

This way you set where you are (positioning), what you want (vision, strategy) and the steps to achieve it (tactic).
When I wrote these down I just realized this funny thing: in business studies we always learn about these things how a company should work, set a vision and then knowing the objectives start operations. As human beings we usually forget about it. Although its so logical. Maybe too much logical. But simple things are the greatest in life.

The Mayonnaise Jar

When things in your life seem , almost too much to handle,
When 24 Hours in a day is not enough,
Remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class
And had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly,
He picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar
and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students, if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured
them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.
The pebbles rolled into the open Areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.
Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively
filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided,
'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things - family,
children, health, Friends, and Favorite passions –
Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car.

The sand is everything else --The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' He continued,
'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,
You will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Play With your children.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

'Take care of the golf balls first --
The things that really matter.
Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled.
'I'm glad you asked'.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,
there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'