Discussion Forum > The Urgent vs the Important
Catherine -
What a great reminder that it's always easy to respond to the urgent, but it's the important that going to get you where you need to go. thanks.
..rani
What a great reminder that it's always easy to respond to the urgent, but it's the important that going to get you where you need to go. thanks.
..rani
January 19, 2009 at 2:19 |
rani
rani
Absolutely Catherine.
It's interesting isn't it that for AF to have been working so well the way it does, our sub-conscious clearly always knew the difference - just didn't act on it. Now how silly is that? :-)
It's interesting isn't it that for AF to have been working so well the way it does, our sub-conscious clearly always knew the difference - just didn't act on it. Now how silly is that? :-)
January 19, 2009 at 10:23 |
Christine B
Christine B
That's the strength of intuition !
I do not say that intuition is more important than rationale, but it should always have the last word. AF promotes that.
Intuition tells you how well you can live with the decision you're to take.
Our inner judgement.
I do not say that intuition is more important than rationale, but it should always have the last word. AF promotes that.
Intuition tells you how well you can live with the decision you're to take.
Our inner judgement.
January 19, 2009 at 11:01 |
Jacques Turbé
Jacques Turbé
Cathrine,
The Covey system has a 4 quadrant system of urgent v. importance as one of its central ideas. I don't find it useful in daily practice, but trying it several years ago has ingrained in me a quick mental check which gives me the same information without the bookkeeping. Without a doubt, urgency can get wildly out of control and swamp the importance in our lives.
The Covey system has a 4 quadrant system of urgent v. importance as one of its central ideas. I don't find it useful in daily practice, but trying it several years ago has ingrained in me a quick mental check which gives me the same information without the bookkeeping. Without a doubt, urgency can get wildly out of control and swamp the importance in our lives.
January 19, 2009 at 12:42 |
Mike
Mike
Hi Jacques,
Would you not agree that some people have demonstrably poor intuition? Would they not benefit from any effort devoted to rational thought about what their intuition is telling them?
Would you not agree that some people have demonstrably poor intuition? Would they not benefit from any effort devoted to rational thought about what their intuition is telling them?
January 19, 2009 at 13:10 |
Mike
Mike
Good question Mike. But do you think it is that "some people have demonstrably poor intuition?" or that it is just that their intuition has not been given free reign, permission if you like, to develop?
January 19, 2009 at 14:41 |
Christine B
Christine B
Mike:
I think we need to be clear what is meant by intuition in this context. Intuition is not some mystic force which gives us visionary messages from the great beyond.
You can bet your bottom dollar that the pilot of the plane which successfully crash-landed on the Hudson River didn't carry out a rational analysis of what to do. He used his intuitiion. But his intuition was the result of all his training and experience over the years, plus his confidence in his own skills. If you or I had tried to use our "intuition" in similar circumstances, the plane would have crashed (assuming you are not a skilled pilot).
It's exactly the same with AF. What it allows us to do is to listen to the voice of our skills and experience which can get drowned out by too rational an analysis.
I think we need to be clear what is meant by intuition in this context. Intuition is not some mystic force which gives us visionary messages from the great beyond.
You can bet your bottom dollar that the pilot of the plane which successfully crash-landed on the Hudson River didn't carry out a rational analysis of what to do. He used his intuitiion. But his intuition was the result of all his training and experience over the years, plus his confidence in his own skills. If you or I had tried to use our "intuition" in similar circumstances, the plane would have crashed (assuming you are not a skilled pilot).
It's exactly the same with AF. What it allows us to do is to listen to the voice of our skills and experience which can get drowned out by too rational an analysis.
January 19, 2009 at 15:16 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
Hi Christine,
Oh yes, I agree that intuition must develop, and it usually develops because we attend to it. I don't think it should be given "free reign", however.
Oh yes, I agree that intuition must develop, and it usually develops because we attend to it. I don't think it should be given "free reign", however.
January 20, 2009 at 12:48 |
Mike
Mike
Mike:
The stated aim of autofocus is to balance the rational and intuitive parts of the mind. For me that's exactly what it does - and it does it better than any other method I've come across.
The stated aim of autofocus is to balance the rational and intuitive parts of the mind. For me that's exactly what it does - and it does it better than any other method I've come across.
January 20, 2009 at 12:55 |
Mark Forster
Mark Forster
Hi Mark,
You said:
"I think we need to be clear what is meant by intuition in this context. Intuition is not some mystic force which gives us visionary messages from the great beyond."
Actually, I did not get from anyone the sense that they were talking woo-woo, though it does have the potential to go that way ;-)
You said:
"You can bet your bottom dollar that the pilot of the plane which successfully crash-landed on the Hudson River didn't carry out a rational analysis of what to do. He used his intuitiion. But his intuition was the result of all his training and experience over the years, plus his confidence in his own skills. If you or I had tried to use our "intuition" in similar circumstances, the plane would have crashed (assuming you are not a skilled pilot)."
Well, I'm a pilot (small single engine planes) but far from skilled at that level. When you train as a pilot you practice dealing with emergency situations over and over until those programs run in your mind all the time. You learn to always look for the next place you could land if the engine quit right now. In fact, you learn to literally FEEL how the plane is doing. OTOH, when you learn to fly by instruments, the very first thing you are shown, is that if you don't depend on your instruments and THINK about what is going on ... if you rely on your INTUITION, you'll wind up flying upside down in short order.
So it is complicated. In some cases intuition means knowing that you need to rationally analyze things. But, your point is absolutely right for the example you gave, those pilots were "running a program" when the engines failed ... one they ran thousands of times in simulators and in their minds. On every take-off in fact. I guarantee you that not one second elapsed between the perception of trouble and the initiation of the first emergency action. And even more impressive, they had to act as a team!
You said:
"It's exactly the same with AF. What it allows us to do is to listen to the voice of our skills and experience which can get drowned out by too rational an analysis."
I agree with that, assuming that we have developed that intuition. The trouble is that most people who are looking for a time management system are doing so because they are in trouble because they are using intuition to make time management choices ... and it has not worked for them.
I'm all for using well developed intuition.
You said:
"I think we need to be clear what is meant by intuition in this context. Intuition is not some mystic force which gives us visionary messages from the great beyond."
Actually, I did not get from anyone the sense that they were talking woo-woo, though it does have the potential to go that way ;-)
You said:
"You can bet your bottom dollar that the pilot of the plane which successfully crash-landed on the Hudson River didn't carry out a rational analysis of what to do. He used his intuitiion. But his intuition was the result of all his training and experience over the years, plus his confidence in his own skills. If you or I had tried to use our "intuition" in similar circumstances, the plane would have crashed (assuming you are not a skilled pilot)."
Well, I'm a pilot (small single engine planes) but far from skilled at that level. When you train as a pilot you practice dealing with emergency situations over and over until those programs run in your mind all the time. You learn to always look for the next place you could land if the engine quit right now. In fact, you learn to literally FEEL how the plane is doing. OTOH, when you learn to fly by instruments, the very first thing you are shown, is that if you don't depend on your instruments and THINK about what is going on ... if you rely on your INTUITION, you'll wind up flying upside down in short order.
So it is complicated. In some cases intuition means knowing that you need to rationally analyze things. But, your point is absolutely right for the example you gave, those pilots were "running a program" when the engines failed ... one they ran thousands of times in simulators and in their minds. On every take-off in fact. I guarantee you that not one second elapsed between the perception of trouble and the initiation of the first emergency action. And even more impressive, they had to act as a team!
You said:
"It's exactly the same with AF. What it allows us to do is to listen to the voice of our skills and experience which can get drowned out by too rational an analysis."
I agree with that, assuming that we have developed that intuition. The trouble is that most people who are looking for a time management system are doing so because they are in trouble because they are using intuition to make time management choices ... and it has not worked for them.
I'm all for using well developed intuition.
January 20, 2009 at 13:04 |
Mike
Mike
Mark,
"Develop the rational and intuitive parts of the mind" ??? I thought the aim was to get stuff done!
I suppose it has that effect ... I had not thought much about it until now. However, I don't know why other people are interested in this system ... but I can tell you that I'm interested in it because it seems to work better than other systems in clearing items off my list. As to rational and intuitive ... well, I'm all for anything that works.
"Develop the rational and intuitive parts of the mind" ??? I thought the aim was to get stuff done!
I suppose it has that effect ... I had not thought much about it until now. However, I don't know why other people are interested in this system ... but I can tell you that I'm interested in it because it seems to work better than other systems in clearing items off my list. As to rational and intuitive ... well, I'm all for anything that works.
January 20, 2009 at 13:12 |
Mike
Mike
"it's time to mitigate the urgent to focus on the important"
( http://lifehacker.com/5132674/so-long-and-thanks-for-all-the-fish )
I've found that there's a lot of stuff that looks "urgent" but often when we miss the deadlines, we realise it wasn't the end of the world. Chasing deadlines and imposed priorities can often lead to letting the more important (but not urgent) stuff slide plus a whole lot of stress. I'm finding AF has helped to remind me what is actually important and makes sure I am constantly progressing on those items/projects.