Important vs Urgent Tasks

Important Tasks are things that contribute to your achieving long-term goals whether these are professional or personal. Urgent Tasks are things that requires immediate attention and are usually associated with achieving someone else’s goals. The consequence of not dealing with Urgent Tasks are immediate. Sometimes Important Tasks are also urgent, but typically they’re not. When we focus on Important Tasks we operate in a responsive mode, which helps us stay calm, rational, and open to new opportunities. Urgent Tasks put us in a reactive mode, one marked by a defensive, negative, hurried, and narrowly focused mindset.

You are efficient when you do All Things right. When you pay attention to everything that comes your way, you will become very busy. Be rest assured at the end of the day do you feel completely sapped and drained of energy, and yet can’t point to anything you accomplished of real significance. That’s a recipe for personal frustration and resentment towards other people

You are effective when you do All the Right things. When you pay attention to only the things that improve your well-being, makes you happy, gives you a sense of fulfillment, that makes you productive. It is not everything that comes your way that requires your attention rather you choose intentionally and proactively.

Efficient people are more concerned about other people’s thoughts, words and actions toward them. Effective people are more concerned about their own thoughts, words and actions toward self. Efficient people seek what to receive, Effective people seek what to give. Efficient people are consumers; Effective people are producers.

Efficient people focus on Urgent Tasks. Effective people focus on Important Tasks.  Know the difference between Urgent and Important Tasks. Prioritize your activities, with who and what. Invest your time wisely. Allocate time appropriately to Urgent and Important tasks. For what is the advantage to you if you are busy everywhere with everyone but lose or be irrelevant to everyone that matters in your life?