Getting my Priorities in Order

Priorities are important.  We all have them.  What do you have in your list of priorities?  I like this image, as it lists lots of different priorities, but they are all jumbled, so you really don't know what is most important.  I guess that is because they are different to everyone.  That is what makes the world go round.  My priorities have changed over time.  Obviously my priorities as a young girl, a single college girl, even a new mom, are a lot different from what they are now.  We are all a work in progress.  I just want my progress to be going in the direction that will most benefit me, my family, my friends, and my business.  
So this has been a stressful week caused by a phone call from the breast imaging center.  I realize that this is their job, but when they call you out of the blue and in a nonchalant voice say that the radiologist would like you to come back in to the office to re-do your mammogram... and he'd like you to have an ultrasound too, well, it is hard to hold it together.  Especially when I'm still trying to wrap my head around the passing of my mom to cancer in May.  On top of it all, I knew my husband was going to be out of town when I had my appointment.  I was trying to be strong, but, oh the thoughts that have been flying through my head.  All the negotiations with God, the wondering if it even mattered that I have been working on getting fit and eating better, even wondering about what I would look like without hair.  I can't even go into the thoughts I had about my husband and children.  The good news is that after the second mammogram the radiologist said that everything was clear and I didn't need to have the ultrasound.  He said something about how they compare them as a mirror image and there was some sort of asymmetry.  Ha!  I could have told him they were asymmetrical!  You don't need a mammogram for that, just a set of eyeballs!!  Anyway, I've come out of this experience with a new found vision for what I want my future to look like.

Back in April I went to a short training that talked about Franklin Covey's productivity quadrant.  This past week really brought that back to the front of my brain.  So I learned that I need to be spending most of my time in quadrant II.  And I want to get out of my habit of spending time in quadrant IV!  Now for me though, I feel that spending time with my family is a pleasant activity, however, I would place it in II, because I want to build memories and raise my children in a responsible way.  I've come to realize that while it is important to have a job, and be productive and successful at work, it is far more important that I take time to let my family know they are valuable and important to me.  Sure, I can tell them all the time, but how do you really show that something is important to you??  You give it your time.  That is it.  Simple as that.  So, I have placed my family at the very top of my priorities.


Finally, here is the deal for me.  I am going to spend more time with my family, I am going to take care of myself, so I can spend more time with my family.  I will be working on my Beachbody coaching business so I will eventually be able to work from home and spend more time with my family.  Are you seeing a pattern here??  These things are priorities for me.  They are not an option.  I am focusing on what is important to me.  Life has a way of throwing things at you and it is how you deal with them that matters.  I've realized after this week of stress, that I handled it the best I could at the time, but from now on I will be facing life with a positive attitude and making sure that my friends and family know that I love and care about them.  I will be working hard to improve my health and the health of those I care about.  We only have this one life to live and I want to look back on mine and know that I focused on what mattered. I will look back and know I lived my best life for me and for everyone that matters to me.