Do What’s Important First

I hope that most people want to improve some aspect of their lives. If your life is already perfect, I am happy for you, and you have no reason to read the rest of this post. If there is something in your life you want to improve, there are three tools I find effective. I will discuss the first, “Do What’s Important First,” in this post. People I know say that I have willpower and discipline. Maybe so, but I use a lot of tools and tricks. This is one of my favorites.

The tool, Do What’s Important First, applies to anything you want to accomplish. I use it for habits I want to develop, getting in shape, and choosing which trip to take next. It also works well for less important choices, such as which hike to take on a trip in the mountains. The concept sounds obvious, but most people don’t do the important thing first. They procrastinate. Kids work on their pencil drawer and the text’s font before they start writing the term paper. Many people plan to start a diet and exercise program on January 1, rather than today. Write the paper first, and start eating better right now. This concept is critical in starting habits because they are so difficult to develop.

Years ago, I read several studies showing how good pushups are for your health. This study in JAMA shows the link between the capacity to do pushups and the risk of a future heart attack. (This is not one of the studies that got me started on this habit, but it is impressive.) I do pushups virtually every day. I have only missed days when I was ill or getting a colonoscopy.

People often can’t believe that I have done pushups every morning for years, but it’s true. This morning, I did three sets of 55 pushups about 30 minutes apart. How do I do it? It is important to me to do pushups daily, so I do it first. I get up, I do a set, then another, then another. That’s it. It took me years to build up to this level—I could only do a few when I started, and my form was terrible.

If I didn’t do pushups first thing every morning, or if I waited until later in the day, something would have always come up. I could be tired, hungry, busy—whatever. By 6:00 a.m., I have already done one of the things that is important to me. Other things are important, and I do them early also. Since I don’t enjoy doing pushups, it is especially important that I do them first. Ryan Holiday talks about doing the hardest thing first. It’s called swallowing the toad. I feel that way about pushups. On the other hand, I want to write something, anything, every day, but I enjoy it much more than pushups, so I can do my writing second, and so on. I talk more about wasting time here.

I wanted to get in shape in general, so I work out almost every day. Read about the benefits of exercise in my book, The Six Rules For a Healthier, Longer Life. I have trouble exercising before eating, so I exercise first thing after eating, usually when my wife leaves for work. If she’s home, we try to work out together. I will talk about spending time with others when I discuss another tool I use.

How does “Do What’s Important First” apply to choosing trips to take? Several years ago, my wonderful wife and I were debating what trip to take. We hadn’t been to Michigan for many years, so that was on our list. There were five or six other trips we had planned, including Yosemite and Oregon, where we had never been together. We chose Michigan because our dear friends, Jack and Suzanne, lived there. I have known them since I was about two, longer than any other non-relative. You never know what is going to happen, so we chose to go to Michigan. We had a wonderful trip, seeing the Upper Peninsula, Mackinac Island, and spending time with our friends. Less than two years later, Jack passed away. Had we gone somewhere else, we may never have seen him again.

This tool, to do what’s important first, helps when choosing less important things, like which hike to take. My wife and I love trips where we can hike all day long. I do the legwork—booking flights, arranging a rental car, and finding a hotel or VRBO, while she considers the hikes and chooses which ones we should do. Most of the time, I agree with her choices. In fact, I have never once been disappointed in her plan. In Oregon last month, we went on beautiful trails in places that didn’t sound all that great to me, but her choices were gold. For example, I was blown away by Smith Rock State Park near Bend.

My wife always asks me whether I agree with her plan for a day of hiking. My usual question is “What is the best hike here?” Whatever she answers, I respond with, “Let’s do that hike first.” If we save the best hike for later, we could be disappointed. It could storm, they could close the trail for a bear sighting, or I could sprain an ankle and not be able to hike. (If she sprains an ankle or even breaks a toe, it doesn’t stop her.)

If you want to make sure you get it done, then do it first. This also holds true in life’s big choices. If you really want to have kids, try early in your marriage. If you wait, you could become unable to have kids later. It happens more often than you may think. If you want a particular career, get started right away. Most kids who drop out, even those who say they plan to go back, don’t get a degree within eight years. So, if you want a career that requires a college degree, start early and work hard. Finish the degree first. Gap years may not have the same negative effect on attaining a college degree. Still, the ones who succeed after a gap year usually do something during that year to further their career and gain clarity about their career path.

Doing the important thing first is intuitive. Of course, you shouldn’t put off homework until you get home from a party. You shouldn’t go for a beer after work, planning on going to the gym right after. Still, it helps to actually focus on the concept. Many people never take the time to think it through. They believe they will have the time and motivation to go to the gym after a drink with friends. They believe they will feel like doing pushups and yoga after a big breakfast. More often than not, they won’t feel up to it. They will have completed the less important tasks (which may even be harmful) and ignore the important ones.