“Wheres there no gardener, there’s no garden”
- First Things First, page 77
"More than an evolution, we need a revolution. We need to move beyond time management to life leadership—to a fourth generation based on paradigms that will create quality-of-life results"- First Things First, page 31
We are constantly bombarded by ugent choices in the modern, fast-paced landscape. Sometimes we don’t like these choices and we begin to neglect what we feel is of paramount importance to our lives, creating guilt and frustration. The authors review time management literature around the concepts of the clock and the compass, in addition to the three generations of time management. The clock is our commitments, appointments, schedules, goals and activities. The compass is our vision, values, principles, mission, direction and what we feel is important to our lives. The struggles begin when there are misalignments between our clocks and compasses. The three generations of time management are:
The authors suggest a fourth generation which includes the first three generations, but eliminates their weaknesses. These weaknesses include a reliance on urgency and a lack of understanding of the expectations around a good quality of life. This concept is not easy to grasp and means implementing a paradigm shift in thinking. This means moving from a position of responding to urgency, to concentrating on what is important. These are universal things like living a responsible life, loving fully, learning and leaving a legacy. Knowing what is important to you rather than being reactive around urgency is the key.
The authors provide a time management matrix that is divided into four quadrants around importance and urgency. This gives the reader an easier means of grasping the concepts around urgency and importance.
Quadrant 1—Urgent and important: Crisis (i.e. a medical emergency). It can be problematic if action is left in quadrant one too long.
Quadrant 2—Important, not urgent: The quadrant of quality and personal leadership, long range planning, reading, empowering others and relationship development.
Quadrant 3—Urgent but not important: Creates an illusion of being important, such as interruptions and phone calls.
Quadrant 4—Not urgent or important: Trivia, social media, youtube videos about funny cats, etc.
In order to move from urgency to importance (to quadrant 2) we must learn to identify our “first things” in life.
"What we are talking about are the true north realities upon which quality of life is based."- First things First, page 54
In order to determine the first things the authors suggest three underlying principles:
The authors suggest the following strategies to develop human endowments:
The bottom line is that the power to create a great quality life is not within any digital planner or technique, it is within us. It is the power of our inner compass that allows us to act with integrity and clarity when moments of choice occur.
Implementation of shifting focus from urgency to importance involves six steps based on principles and endowments;
"Becoming principle centred is just that: becoming. It’s not arriving; it’s a lifetime quest."- First Things First, page 291
The results of becoming principle centred are profound, you will:
These benefits will increase quality of life, allow you to focus more on important tasks (not just the urgent ones), and make you more effective both in work and in your personal life.
First Things First is a classic that still stands up well in the genre of management books. To get the most out of this book you have to become involved in a deep way and be willing to examine your life, your scripts, vision, missions, and motives: your “first things.” Exercises and charts throughout the book are useful tools to implement and understand concepts. It is a large book and can’t be digested in one sitting and perhaps is best read in parts. The concepts are profound and life changing. Any leader that wants to move from time management to personal management should read this book: it will give you the means of choosing the correct course to achieve a life of fulfillment.
A. Roger Merrill and Rebecca Merrill are the authors of the bestselling First Things First. Roger is the vice president and co-founder of the prestigious Franklin Cove Company. He writes, consults, and teaches leadership worldwide. The Merrills live in Salt Lake City, Utah.
