Quick one this week, but an important one.
I came across the “Jar of Life” concept recently and honestly, it hit different. You’ve probably seen it before, the video gets shared a lot online, but if you haven’t, stick with me, because it’s worth your time.
The Jar of Life: A Lesson Worth Revisiting
Imagine a teacher standing at the front of the class with an empty jar on the desk.
First, he fills the jar with golf balls. These represent the most important things in your life, your family, your friends, your health, your passions. He asks the class, “Is the jar full?” Everyone agrees. Yeah, it’s full.
Then he pulls out a bag of pebbles and pours them in, filling the gaps around the golf balls. The pebbles represent the other important stuff, your house, your car, your job or business. “Full now?” The class nods. Definitely full.
Then out comes the sand, filling every last bit of space. The sand? That’s everything else. The small stuff. The noise.
Here’s the lesson: if you fill your jar with sand first, there’s no room for the pebbles, and definitely no room for the golf balls.
How many of us are doing exactly that? Buried in small, nonsense tasks and forgetting to make room for what actually matters?
Oh, and One More Thing…
After the sand, the teacher pulls out a beer and pours it in.
The class laughs and asks what the beer represents.
His answer? “No matter how full your jar is, there’s always room to sit down with friends and family and enjoy a couple of pints.”
I love that.
No matter how busy life gets, how packed your schedule is, how long your to-do list runs, make time for the people who matter. It doesn’t have to be much. Even a couple of hours goes a long way.
So this week, ask yourself: What’s filling up your jar that shouldn’t be there?
Start with the golf balls. Always start with the golf balls.
We’ll chat again next week!
This Week's Quote
"It's not enough to be busy, so are the ants. The question is, what are we busy about?"
