“Which one thing, if I accomplished it, would result in the greatest number of all these other things that I also want to do also getting done as a result?”

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Here’s the irony: When you focus on what’s most important, you often get all the other stuff “thrown in.” This happens by virtue of the spillover effect. Doing the most important thing leads to positive ramifications that often accomplish the aims behind all those other things you weren’t able to do.

I’m not saying you will literally find that all the things you decided to leave undone are accomplished. Some of them will be. But more significantly, the point behind them will often be accomplished through the spillover effect.

That’s significant.

But if you try to do everything directly, you often end up accomplishing nothing. (Or, almost nothing.)

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And the reason for this is the simple fact that there will always be more to do than you possibly can do. It is simply impossible to do everything.

And, if you know what’s best, if you know what’s most important and what really counts, you will be OK with that.

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In my chapter, I go against a major problem in most books on productivity. Most of them talk about having a “mission” or “purpose” to your life, but they say “that’s a very personal thing, something for you to decide for yourself.”

I think that’s wrong. Pretty bad, in fact. The reason is that since we didn’t create ourselves, we cannot define our own purpose. God himself defined the purpose of life. What we need to do is identify the purpose he has defined, say it in a way that captures the unique angle on that he has placed in our life, and align ourselves around it. Or, better, align ourselves not first around our “purpose,” but the gospel, with our purpose directing us but the gospel empowering and defining us.

Interestingly, the Bible talks about the purpose of life a lot. You even see mission statements all over the place, especially in Paul.

Here are my brief, rough, notes:

Criteria any Potential Purpose Must Fulfill

Must create happiness. Flourishing. So when the Bible talks of “blessedness,” we are in this domain.

It must create a happiness that is eternal, not fleeting. And happiness that is great, in itself invincible, and that can endure through immense trial and difficulty.

What the Purpose of Life Is

Making God look good. Making “good reports” about him abound. Making joy in him abound.

But not just anything does this. Mercy is at the heart of it. And justice. And, you must really do it for his glory. Micah 6:8; Isaiah 1:18; 58:1-13; Mt 5:16

What This Does

You can fulfill it each day, and yet never fully complete it. There is always more.

It drives your actions, gives purpose, and cannot be exhausted or wear out.

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Don’t just think in terms of urgent vs. important. Think in terms of imperative vs. important.

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Here’s the research:

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I bring together the various strands in the Scriptures that teach this, one of which is that evildoers are presented in Scripture as making plans for evil (Satan himself being the chief example — Ephesians 6:11 [note the word "schemes"]). If the wicked create plans for harm, how much more should those who follow the Lord create plans for good.

Here’s something interesting on that. Proverbs 24:9 says: “The devising of folly is sin.” In other words, not only is carrying out plans for harm sin, but the actual planning is itself sin.

Conversely, it stands to reason, then, that making plans for good is itself righteous and good. Carrying out plans that serve others is good, but so also is making those plans in the first place.

That should be an encouragement not only to take initiative and be proactive in devising good things we can do for people; it should also be an encouragement for those who have sought to do good things for others but been hindered in the execution.

Take heart that recognizing the opportunity to serve, along with the planning and intentions and forethought, were themselves good and pleasing to God — even if you weren’t able to execute and make them happen.

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The Bible Affirms Planning that is Done in Dependence on God: “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” (Proverbs 16:3)

The Bible is Against Planning that Does Not Take God into Account: “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’ — yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. . . . Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’ As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” (James 4:13-16)

Here’s how we can put it: The Bible is highly in favor of planning, and in fact commends and, it can be argued, commands planning.

But planning can be done in two ways: God-dependent and godless. And, godless planning is not what you might expect. It can seem innocent. But godless planning is any time you create plans without taking God into consideration — without acknowledging his authority over all things, and that heaven rules, not you. It calls this type of planning arrogant. And we can fall into it without even knowing it.

The Bible is pro-planning. But it is anti- what we might call arrogant planning.

And arrogant planning doesn’t mean necessarily being high-handed and in opposition to God. It can mean simply forgetting about him in making your plans.

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“Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.” (Proverbs 14:4)

You need to do both. But things will not stay perfectly organized, and there will be times when they get almost totally out of hand.

That’s OK. The manger won’t always be clean, and it’s worth it.

Keep things as orderly as you can, and when they get out of control for a while, make sure to eventually take time to clear the decks.

You shouldn’t generally have to chose. But if you have to for a time, fruitfulness is more important than organization.

And, don’t begrudge the time you have to spend getting and keeping things organized. That’s a necessary part of things, which is the main point of the verse.

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Making Ideas Happen: Overcoming the Obstacles Between Vision and Reality

1. Improving your personal organizational habits
2. Engaging a broader community
3. Developing your leadership capability

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Making Ideas Happen: Overcoming the Obstacles Between Vision and Reality

Perspiration is the best form of differentiation, especially in the creative world. Work ethic alone can single-handedly give your ideas the boost that makes all the difference.

Unfortunately, perspiration is not glamorous. Endless late nights, multiple redrafts, and countless meetings consume the majority of your time — all with the intention of breathing life into your projects.

Passion for your work will also play an important role. Passion yields tolerance — tolerance for all of the frustration and hardship that come your way as you seek to make your ideas happen.

Now this is interesting, because I’m writing about this right now in my book: Creativity works best when channeled within the framework of a basic schedule.

In order to channel your ability to focus — and perspire — for extended periods of time, you will likely need to develop a consistent work schedule. Structuring time spent executing ideas is a best practice of admired creative leaders across industries.

It is the only way to keep up with the continuous stream of action steps and allocate sufficient time for deep thought.

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I think that if you are doing a lot of work where you have to “goad” yourself to get it done, you are probably in the wrong job. Plus, a lot of the detailed tactics for self-motivation don’t work long-term. It is far better to make procrastination a non-issue, which is what my first point gets at.

1. Love what you do

The best motivation is to love what you do. It’s far better to tackle the “problem” of motivation at the higher level so that you don’t even need to deal with the more detailed and specific motivational tactics.

The three components of motivation are autonomy, mastery, and purpose. If you find yourself needing to be motivated, rather than identifying tactics like “reward yourself after you get done with a hard task,” take a look at whether you believe in the purpose of your tasks (and, before that, actually know the purpose!), whether the tasks are too hard (or too easy), and whether you have the freedom to do them in your own way.

The best type of motivation is to want to do the things you have to do — to be pulled toward them by a desire to do them and make a difference and serve others — rather than to be pushed towards them through carrots and sticks (rewards and punishments). Intrinsic motivation trumps extrinsic motivation every time. When you like your work, procrastination typically becomes a non-issue.

Now, at the same time, there will always be tasks now and then that we just find ourselves entirely dis-inclined to do. Maybe it’s even a task we ordinary love, but we are extremely tired that day and yet are on a deadline and need to get it done. Or maybe there are other factors interfering. In these cases, tactics can sometimes be useful. Here’s one I’ve found useful.

2. Take Breaks After Starting the Next Part of a Task, Rather Than In Between

When you take a break, don’t take your break at a natural stopping point. Instead, get to a natural stopping point, and then start into the next segment of the task. This gets you into it a bit and gets your wheels turning. Then take your break. While you are on your break, your mind will be inclined to get going again, since you’ve already started in to it. So it will be easier to come back from the break and avoid letting the break turn into an extended period of procrastination.

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“I would need almost two secretaries; I do almost nothing all day but write letters.” Luther and His Katie, 35

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So, I’m posting here the four steps to making effective decisions that I would have developed a bit in the book. They are:

1. Understand the objectives
2. Consider the alternatives
3. Consider risk
4. Decide

Very basic, to be sure. But it is surprising how often we go into important decisions haphazardly, without taking an intentional (albeit simple) approach.

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I do think it is valuable, in planning your day, to identify which tasks are “A” priorities for that day and which tasks are “B” or “C.” Prioritizing can be done wrong, but I think it is helpful in general.

Here’s a nice outcome of this: If you identify “A” and “B” tasks, then when you are done with your “A” tasks, the rest of the day has lower pressure. You can be more free to be interrupted because these tasks aren’t absolutely essential for the day (they are “B” priorities for that day), and yet it feels like you are getting ahead with whatever you do get done.

I don’t think it’s good to have your whole day consist simply of pre-defined tasks and appointments. But it’s hard to get around the need for some sort of list. This helps you keep that list from becoming a tyrant rather than a tool and servant.

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