I received the following story as an email and I thought it was worth repeating:
The Mayonnaise Jar
When things in your life seem almost too much to handle,
When 24 hours in a day is not enough;
remember the mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee.
A professor stood before his philosophy class
and had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly,
he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar
and started to fill it with golf balls.
He then asked the students if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured
it into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.
The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.
He then asked the student again
if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand
and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded
with a unanimous 'yes.'
The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table
and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively
filling the empty space between the sand.
The students laughed.
'Now,' said the professor, as the laugter subsided,
'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.
'The golf balls are the important things--God, family,
children, health, friends, and favorite passions.
Things that if everything else was lost
and only they remained, your life would still be full.
'The pebbles are the things that matter like your job, house, and car...
'The sand is everything else--the small stuff.
'If you put sand into the jar first,' he continued,
'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.
'If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,
You will never have room for the things that are
important to you.
'So...
'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Play with your children.
Take time to get medical check-ups.
Take your partner out to dinner.
There will always be time
to clean the house and fix the dripping tap.
'Take care of the golf balls first--
the things that really matter.
Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'
One of the students raised her hand
and inquired what the coffee represented.
The professor smiled.
'I'm glad you asked.'
'It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,
there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'
~Anonymous
(with some minor formatting changes)
So today wasn't perfect, but I was much more conscious of the golf balls and pebbles versus the sand in my life. I even found some time to load the dishwasher! ;)
Well the formatting won't work, but it's still readable!
ReplyDeleteThis is so timely for me. I read it Monday afternoon, right after having a golf ball discussion with my manager. Here's what happened.
ReplyDeleteMy manager and three of my teammates lives in Denver. Two other teammates I live in Phoenix. My manager comes down a couple times a year and plans one-on-one face time with us.
I *love* my manager. I love my job, I love my company, and I really love face time with my manager. She scheduled a breakfast meeting (and I love food!) for us on Thursday morning.
One of my golf balls in life is my workout routine. It's very important to me to get in my exercise or I just feel "off" all day. It's not an emotional guilt thing, it's a physical need for movement. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I go to a class by my house early in the morning.
The meeting my manager scheduled with me interfered with my workout. Well, to be more accurate, it interfered with the time I need to get ready and drive to the office *after* my workout. I debated for a couple of days in my head, then just talked to her about it.
I asked if she had any flexibility in her schedule that morning, explaining why I was asking. She moved our meeting without even blinking. I mentioned I could skip my class that morning, and she said, "No! It's important to you and that makes it important to me. I have time to move it, so don't worry."
It's such a gift when you stand up for your golf balls and others understand their importance!
That is so awesome that she understood and moved the meeting for you! I've never had managers that were that understanding. (But I've always worked icky jobs too ;) )
ReplyDelete