Over the years, I have watched many business people achieve some incredible goals. But, at what price? It seems that in the process of growing their business, many of these people lost the most precious relationships of their lives. Yes, their bank accounts were full and they appeared successful. But at home it was chaos–the marriage in shambles, kids in trouble at school and/or with the law. The eventual result was all too often a home shattered by divorce, and often times it would be a matter of weeks before they would be scrambling in bankruptcy court. All that they had slaved and sacrificed to gain was now lost.
As I've watched this unfold many, many times I purposed in my life to work a different program. I knew there were no easy answers, but it seemed possible to me that this whole dismal scenario could be avoided altogether by 1.) having life's priorities in the proper order; and 2.) by managing time more wisely. The two really do go hand in hand-having right priorities helps us to determine how to make the best use of our time .
As I focused on my priorities and began treating time as if it were a bank account, this became my strategy: to give God first place in my life, my wife second, and my children third. I chose to daily invest time and energy into these key relationships, not allowing work or other activities to crowd them out of my life. Amazingly, as time has passed, my family has grown, my business has grown, and I have grown.
No, I have not arrived-as with most everything in life, this is a process that I will continue to my last breath. But of this one fact I am sure-if I can do it, you can, too! It's simply a matter of personal commitment.
