Kathryn Elizabeth Jones: GUEST POST: Rock and Roll: Putting Your Writing Priorities in Order

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

GUEST POST: Rock and Roll: Putting Your Writing Priorities in Order

I must apologize. I scheduled this post from Vicki Lucas, and then promptly forgot that it was today! (Kind of reminds me of the post below!)

So today you are getting two posts. The first about how much I need aspiring authors, and this one here entitled:

Rock and Roll: Putting Your Writing Priorities in Order

Vicki V. Lucas

Do you ever feel like all you’re doing is spinning your wheels in the mud some days? I often feel like I’m getting nowhere and making a mess. Nothing important is getting done as the dishes pile up. I’d like to say it’s because I’m busy, but I know that many times it’s due to my priorities being out of line.

You want to write a book, but there aren’t enough hours in the day. Maybe you’ve written the book, but now you don’t have time to market it. You know that every second marketing takes you away from writing the next book, just as every second writing takes away from selling the book you have published. How do you make time for work, writing, family, and other responsibilities?

Photo by: sgrace, courtesy of Flickr

To answer that question, I want you to picture a jar, some rocks that are about two inches big, some pebbles, and a lot of sand.

If I put some of the big rocks in the jar, I can fit about three or four in until the jar looks full, and I can’t put any more rocks in without breaking the jar. Although no more rocks fit, I can still pour pebbles into the glass. When I shake it, the pebbles will slip between the bigger rocks and fill in the smaller spaces. Although the glass is starting to look very full, it’s not. The sand goes in next. It fills up all the empty areas. Now the jar is full.

What’s the point?

The jar is your life. The rocks, pebbles, and sand we put in signify what we do in our day. In other words:

· The rocks are the big important things. Perhaps that’s completing a project at work, spending time with your family, or doing your laundry. Whatever it is, your life is going to be bad if you don’t get it done today.

· The pebbles are of lesser concern. For me today, it’s doing the dishes. I want to get them done, but if I don’t, I have clean plates in the cupboard. Maybe you have an assignment due at the end of the week. If you finished it today, that would be great, but you won’t have problems if it doesn’t get done. It’s important but not as urgent.

· Finally, the sand represents the smaller priorities. These are the things that you would like to do someday. This is the closet that needs sorting, the photos that need labeling.

What you need to remember is that if you put the sand in the glass first, all the rocks and pebbles won’t fit. Your time and energy will be wasted. You will never get to the truly important things. To make everything fit, you must figure out what your big rocks are, do them first, and then there is room for everything else.

What are your big rocks today?