Most of us have a natural inclination to be crisis-minded
rather than proactive. We get caught up doing the things that are urgent, but not
important, instead of doing what is important, but not urgent.
With constant email alerts, text dings, and social media
updates, it’s easy for the urgent but unimportant to feel both urgent and important. Even a phone call from a
friend or a last minute meeting can sneak in there and gain undeserved
temporary priority. After all, Aunt Sally could be calling about something
REALLY critical to the future of the universe … or she might just want to talk about her cats.
Important-but-not-urgent things are necessary, but can be
put off until another day. The problem is, “another day” can be delayed indefinitely.
Putting aside time to plan out a presentation for work doesn’t have to happen
this instant, but we may let too many instances like this go by and they then
become a crisis, urgent and important, and we are then driven into a reactive,
even panic state.
Some of the most important things in life are rarely urgent
but always vital: getting an education (informally or formally), self-development,
investing in relationships, creating healthy habits, planning financially, etc.
Learning to ignore trivial matters demanding our immediate attention frees up
our time and energy to spend on the more important things in life before they
become emergencies. Proactivity prevents crises.
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