Urgent vs. Important [I just got an email – “it’s important, reply ASAP”]

I just got an email - Its important reply ASAP. I am wondering if it’s really important for me or to the sender.

Not a topic I like to write. But, it’s something that’s been on my mind lately. It’s funny I’m putting off the trip to the gym, missing my son’s first day to school, that dinner I had planned for a long time, the festival which needed me to be there; but again it understates just how much we've been manipulated by those that would make their important into our urgent…

The problem, of course, is that the list of “do it now” never ends, it merely changes its volume as it gets longer or bigger…

Its morning 6.30 am. My son refuses to take bath to go to school – that urgent. Going to school is important. An angry customer with delivery problems is urgent. Building systems which will prevent delivery problems is important.

That meeting you attended at 8.00am a few weeks back was urgent (you’ve even forgotten about that meeting). Your son’s first day to school was important. You’ll remember that for years.. maybe more than a few years with the right kind of spouse – that’s a different story there!

Sometimes it’s like watching TV. I used to watch a lot of business channels a few years back. Buy stock on tips, watch what the TV anchor says is the next big trend, the next big stock. Bought them only to see that I had just bought something a few percentage points below the absolute lifetime high (I remember RNRL –10 years back which I bought at 190 or so.. at the absolute highest… and thank GOD I had so less money to lose..). Last year - I made three stock transactions (sold one, bought two; out of which I added onto something I already held for past 4 or 5 years). This year I’m down to one transaction. I’ve never had better results in stock market. Just sit tight and watch your stocks. Don’t shift, just make the right buys and sit tight. Let compounding work. Give it time to work.

In fact any sort of breaking news or flash stories are rarely important. Important means long term, structural, secular trend - oh.. that’s something everybody knows’ type of stuff. Something that’s a slightly positive today that can be a long term secular theme..

Yep.. let’s face it. The aim of present day news channels is not to improve your and my knowledge or to give you the tools to have a better life. It’s to make money. The reason rags-to-riches, emotional soaps, or some scandal – political or otherwise attract attention is because its entertaining. Its fun. Its emotionally engaging and attracting your mind to something that’s not challenging. Activity which has no consequences, but fun, engaging and addictive to whatsoever degree. Your mind wants to do it.

The topic started with an email and it just went onto other things. But – this article is just to show you what’s important. What’s not? And maybe act smartly.

The news we listen-to eats us. What your boss tells you, what your employees tells you, what’s on TV, what’s around you, what your investors tell you, what your customers complain about, blah blah blah – everything consumes you.

Your choice (and mine too) is to decide whether you want to engage in living through other people’s important news instead of actually focusing on what’s important for you!

Ciao till next time...Harsha