Priorities in life

By Akhilesh Mittal

It was the last day for students of management school. All the students were on threshold of a bright career. They were taught strategies, organizational behavior and so many other aspects of business all along their two years of management education.  A professor of management wanted to deliver the most important lecture that the students may remember for their entire life.

The professor kept a glass container in front of students. He carefully puts big size stones in the glass container filling it completely. “Is it full?” he asked the students. “Yes, the container is full” was the reply from all the students.

The professor smiled and said “Ok”.

Then he dropped some small size stones into the glass container and these small stones made the way into the container through spaces between the big size stones that were already into the container.

He then asked the class “Is the glass container full?” Students got confused, and after some time one of them answered “Probably not”.

Good! The professor replied.

Then, he started putting the sand in the glass container. The sand went into all of the spaces left between the big size stones and small stones. Once more he asked the question, “Is this jar full?”

The class by this time had understood that there is still some space in glass container. “No!” the class shouted.

Then the professor began to pour water in the glass container, until the container was filled and water came out of the container.

He asked the class, “How do you perceive this demonstration?”

One enthusiastic student said, “No matter how tight the schedule is, we can always fit some more tasks in it!”

The professor smiled again, appreciated the student and said “You are correct to some extent”.

But, the message of this illustration goes beyond this. “The truth is, this demonstration illustrates that – if you don’t put the big stones first, you’ll never get small stones, sand and water in”

What are the big stones in your life? He asked the students. No one answered.

After a little silence the professor said “your dream and ambition that will always help you to perform better; honesty and courteousness that will give you respect; being good to mankind that will give you satisfaction; positive attitude that will make you happy and of course time with your loved ones” remember to put these ‘big stones” in first.-Window To News Network

(Views expressed are personal)