Money & Career: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: #3

"Put First Things First" is habit #3 from Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Habit three is the second creation, the physical creation. It’s the fulfillment, the actualization, the natural emergence of habit one and two. It’s the exercise of independent will toward becoming principle centered.

While leadership decides what first things are, it is management that puts them first, day by day, moment by moment; management is discipline, carrying it out. But it’s not only will power that keeps us in track, it’s the solidity of the goal or the mission statement that strengthens this will to continue to act. It requires independent will, the power to do something when you don’t want to do it, to be a function of your principles rather than a function of the impulse or desire of any given moment. It’s the power to act with integrity to your proactive first creation.
If habit one says that we are the creators, habit two is our first creation, then habit three is our second creation.

The idea behind putting first things first is to prioritize “important” things first instead of “urgent” things. What’s important? What’s urgent? What’s the difference? Things that are important are activities that represent your values, mission, and high-priority goals. Things that are urgent require immediate attention.
See also:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: #1
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: #2