# 3 Priorities

Truth vs. Fiction - Priorities
Make a list of your priorities. Once you've done that, take an honest look at how you spend your free time. Keep a log for a week of how you spend it. Once you analyze it, your "true" priorities have a strange way of materializing themselves into action. When I did it I was amazed at how TV, which wasn't even on my list, had figured prominently into my life despite my not even acknowledging it.

It's not much of a stretch to suggest that many of us (myself included) tend to idealize how we spend our time and distort in our favor (most of us anyway). If you want to align yourself most effectively with your goals and priorities we must do an honest self-assessment and routinely compare our ideals vs. our actual output. Obviously, if you're being truthful with yourself, it's a very revealing, an potentially life-altering exercise.

As a for instance: if I were to say my #1 priority is my family, however I spend most of my discretionary time in seclusion or away from home doing my own thing, doesn't that not make me seem like a hypocrite? Or, if you were to suggest that saving is a big priority, but didn't bother to set any money aside for that express purpose, wouldn't that suggest folly between plan and execution? There would definitely be some dissonance there.

While it can be extremely tough to admit were aren't where we want to be (or anywhere close), the best way is to get on the right track is to compare our actions to our intentions. Then take action to correct it. Once you know where the discrepancy lies, you can direct your actions accordingly to bring them back into balance.