Priority Used To Be Singular Not Plural. What is Your One Thing?
If we make everything in our life important, it makes everything unimportant.
“The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. It stayed singular for the next five hundred years. Only in the 1900s did we pluralize the term and start talking about priorities.” - Greg McKeown
Just because we chose to add the “-ities” to the word doesn’t mean our world or our brain has evolved at the same pace. The world has evolved to demand more of our attention, energy, and effort. Our brain has evolved to believe we can do it all.
We must ask. What are the vital few? What are the trivial many?
Our brain can’t handle, process, and create high-quality outputs when 20 things are all our #1 priority. All 20 being your number one overall draft pick makes the 20 picks not important at all. I am notorious for this in my past, working on 20 things giving 5% of my energy towards each. One root cause is from overconsumption of content (input) creating the feeling that there is a lack of time. The overloaded “To-Do List” creates a lack of accomplishment where we actually need to realize time is undefeated, time is 24 hours. Even with accomplishing a lot that residual feeling sneaks in, “could I have been more productive today?”
My friend Matt Welch (check out his blog here) recently brought up an idea that I have started to apply to my life. What is my one priority that makes today a success? Write it down and track it across weeks, months, and the year. Using the one-line journal concept from Ryan Holiday and applying it to my journal practice/priority list.
Write your one priority for that day
Did you accomplish it?
Track the “ones” across time.
Compounding small singular wins over time.
I have spoken with several of my friends recently about that feeling of unproductiveness that looms at the end of the day. Even on the days when we accomplish a lot. Maybe that feeling at the end of the day isn’t a lack of productivity, it is our brain telling us we need to do less, better. An example is getting after it on coaching, connecting, meetings, emails/documentation, reading 10 pages, investing in my health, and writing then not feeling productive at the end of the day due to the wave of other things that need to be done. This isn’t a productivity problem it is a “singular priority problem”.
If we make everything in our life important, it makes everything unimportant.
Life does not get easier. Michael Easter on the Modern Wisdom Podcast with Chris Williamson shared a great metaphor for life, “When you level up in a video game you don’t get to the point where the level isn’t hard, there is not a point where there are no challenges or obstacles. To live well it is important we accept, embrace, and then grow from levels of discomfort.” In our lives, we level up from 20, 30, and 40 years old the challenge of where you want to spend your energy, effort, and intentions always is in play.
Embrace challenges, discomfort, and the growth that will come from leveling up by starting with your singular priority. It is up to you to decide what is trivial and what is vital.
Fired up to hear from others about their thoughts, how they choose to spend their energy, and their ONE THING.
Best Day of The Year Until Tomorrow…
Ferate