In a blog post about making the right decisions, adapted from his new book The Earned Life, the renowned leadership expert and bestselling author Marshall Goldsmith explores how to prioritize, especially when it comes to delayed gratification.
“All of us create hierarchies for our goals. We we often tackle the easiest. But try to tackle the high-priority goal first.”
Goldsmith writes, “All of us create hierarchies in our minds for our goals. We give some of them a high priority and others a low one. Some are hard to achieve, some are easy. In my experience, the hard goals tend to be the high-priority items, the easy ones the low-priority. Conventional wisdom says we should start each day getting the easy, low-priority goals out of the way, because it’s nice to begin the day with some victories. And because we’re human, naturally drawn to the low-hanging fruit of easy goals, we follow the conventional wisdom, all the while delaying the gratification of tackling our high- priority goals. For one day, be unconventional. Tackle the high-priority goal first.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is prioritizing vaccination and boosters as Covid infection numbers increase throughout the U.S. The CDC recently recommended that children ages 5 to 11 receive the newly authorized Covid-19 booster shot from Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE. Many of the nation’s doctors, pharmacies and other vaccination sites are expected to begin offering the extra doses to the 28 million U.S. children in the age group. The shots are to be given five months after the second dose. The CDC is still recommending that people 12 years and older who are immunocompromised or who are 50 and older should receive a second booster dose at least four months after their first. Widespread vaccination is a priority.
In The Earned Life Goldsmith uncovers the source of today’s existential crises, including regrets that stem from choices that irrevocably alter our lives, reroute destinies, and haunt our memories. These are particularly timely themes today.
With Goldsmith’s book as a guide, readers can close the gap between what they plan to achieve and what they actually get done—even in a world full of inescapable unfairness and curveballs—and live an earned life that is fulfilling in the long run.
You can read Marshall Goldsmith’s blog here.
About MARSHALL GOLDSMITH
Marshall Goldsmith has been recognized for years as the world’s leading executive coach and the New York Times bestselling author of many books, including What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, Mojo, and Triggers. He received his Ph.D. from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. In his coaching practice, Goldsmith has advised more than 200 major CEOs and their management teams. He and his wife live in Nashville, Tennessee.
About THE EARNED LIFE
In THE EARNED LIFE (Currency Books), Marshall Goldsmith uncovers the source of today’s existential crisis: regret, the kind stemming from choices that irrevocably alter our lives, reroutes destinies, and haunts our memories—particularly timely themes as the pandemic and Great Resignation inspire people to seek meaning in their lives, get unstuck and make changes. With this book as their guide, readers can close the gap between what they plan to achieve and what they actually get done—even in a world full of inescapable unfairness and curveballs—and live an earned life too fulfilling to dwell on the “what ifs.”
If you’d like more information on Marshall Goldsmith, The Earned Life, and his work, please get in touch with Lyda Goldsmith.
