>  Here's a little something to think about, for all us busy people.
>
>   A while back I was reading about an expert on the subject of time
> management.  One day this expert was speaking to a group of business
> students and, to drive home a point, used an illustration I'm sure those
> students will never forget. After I  share it with you, you'll never
> forget it either.
>
>  As this man stood in front of the group of  high-powered overachievers
he
> said, "Okay, time for a quiz."
>
> Then he pulled out a one-gallon, wide-mouthed mason jar and set it on a
> table in front of him.  He produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and
> carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was
> filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, "Is this
> jar full?"
>
>  Everyone in the class said, "Yes."
>
> Then he said, "Really?"
>
> He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel.  Then he
>  dumped some gravel in and shook  the jar causing pieces of gravel to
>  work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks. Then he
>  smiled and asked the group once more, "Is the jar full?"
>
>  By this time the class was onto him.
>
> "Probably not," one of them  answered.
>  "Good!"  he replied.  And he reached under the table and brought out a
> bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand in and it went into all the
> spaces left between the rocks and the gravel.
>
> Once more he asked the question, "Is this jar full?"
> "No!"  the class shouted.
>
> Once again he said, "Good!" Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began
> to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. Then he looked up at
> the class and asked, "What is the point of this illustration?" One eager
> beaver raised his hand and said, "The point is, no matter how full your
> schedule is, if you try really hard, you can always fit some more things
> into it!"
>
> "No," the speaker replied, "that's not the point.  The truth this
> illustration teaches us is: If you don't put the big rocks in first,
> you'll never get them in at all. What are the 'big rocks' in your life?
A
> project that YOU want to accomplish? Time with your loved ones, Your
> faith, your education, your finances? A cause? Teaching or mentoring
> others? Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first or you'll never get
them
> in at all. So, tonight or in the morning when you are reflecting on
this
> ask yourself this question: What are the 'big rocks' in my life or
> business? Then, put those in your jar first."
>