Better Business Coaching

In these troubled times when you are not sure just where to focus your effort then the following story may help:

During a presentation to some senior managers on time management the trainer said “OK, it’s time for a quiz.”

He then put on the table a large wide-mouthed jar.  He set this next to a plate of  large rocks.  “How many of these rocks do you think we can get in the jar?”” he asked.  After the delegates had made their guess, he said “OK, let’s find out.”  He set one rock in the jar…then another…then another until the jar was full. He then asked, “Is this jar full?”.  All the delegates looked at the rocks and said, “Yes”.

He then said “Ahhh.”  He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel and then poured some gravel in and shook the jar and the gravel went in all the spaces left by the big rocks.  Then he grinned and said once more, “Is the jar full?”.  The reply back was “No”.

He said “Good” and grabbed a jug of water and began to pour it in.  He got something like a pint of water in that jar.  The he said, “Well what’s the point?”  Someone said, “Well, there are gaps, and if you work really hard you can always fit some more things into your life.”

“No, that is not the point.  The point is this; if you hadn’t put these big rocks in first, would you ever have gotten any of them in?”

The ‘big rocks’ are, of course, a metaphor for the important things in your life and that if you don’t consciously make room for the important things, they will be overwhelmed by the less important things.

What are the ‘big rocks’ in your business?  Your customers, your marketing, your employees?  Whatever your ‘big rocks’ are, do make sure that these are the things that you prioritise and put into your schedule first.

Carole Davidson is an Executive Business Coach