Shift in priority

“There can only ever be one priority.” I don’t know how many times my former manager, Jason Russell, mentioned this in the two years I spent working with him in Branson, MO. Six years later, I find the verse echoing in my head as I feel pulled in numerous directions every day, and sometimes every hour.

Another friend of mine lives and breathes by her lists. She has lists for work, lists for home, lists for projects and lists for dreams. Her lists no doubt helped her land her current position within our company. Some days, I envy her incredible organization skills. I have clouds. There is a cloud with “home stuff,” a cloud for “future stuff,” a cloud for “work stuff,” and often a cloud for, “Holy cow, you’re going to be late! Get it done now!” Whether clouds or lists, you can still only effectively work on one priority at a time. Instead of asking “What are your priorities?” I like to ask, “What is my present priority?” Once I’ve drawn the imaginary horizontal line through it, the next most pressing matter will become the priority. I like how Mike Vardy puts it in The Productive Life:

A priority is not a project; it’s a way of picking tasks that will move projects forward at the speed you desire. ~ Mike Vardy

I haven’t written a blog post in over a month. It’s not that I have forgotten or found myself void of content. Instead,I experienced a shift in priority. For seven months I have been taking online classes to earn my Certified Travel Industry Specialist (CTIS) certification. The past two months have been the home stretch, chock full of essays, charts and forum posts. With the final two courses behind me, I will graduate in January. My business card will then read, “Nathan A. Claycomb, CTIS.” Only those working in the tourism industry will understand the meaning. I’m excited that those who don’t will think I work for a covert government agency. I plan on playing along.

Completing eight seminars and six collegiate courses while working full time, traveling over 80 days a year and maintaining strong relationships gave me a greater appreciation for those completing masters degree programs from home. A friend recently asked me if I learned a lot about the travel industry. I told him, “I did, but more importantly I learned a lot about myself.” I learned that a true hustle takes more than determination and will, it takes great focus. Jon Acuff says, “Hustle is an act of focus, not frenzy.” That tweetable phrase sounds great on digital paper, but wow, is it the truth. Furthermore, I learned that I can hustle.

Now it is time to refocus and redirect my energy to writing once again. Honestly, I never stopped, but I was writing essays, not blog posts. So stay tuned, friends. Fresh content #fromwhereIsit is on the way.