In the book Seven Habits for Highly Effective People, Steven Covey shares many principles for a highly effective life in business and otherwise. Recently having reread this amazing resource, I saw many healthy habits that relate to your health as well.
The third habit that he references involves Putting First Things First, and to help you do that he encourages you to take a piece of paper and divide it into four quadrants. The first quadrant is to put activities that are both urgent and important. The second quadrant is for the non-urgent, yet important. The third quadrant is for the urgent, yet non-important. And the final quadrant is for the non-urgent and non-important.
He further shares that most people spend their lives bouncing getting done what lies in quadrants one, three, and four, while the most effective people (I would say the healthiest) spend most of their efforts in the realm of quadrant two. The non-urgent, yet important.
An example of quadrant one (urgent and important) would be the person that waits until they are feeling exceptional pain and that causes them to seek some care because it is interrupting their life in so many ways. The emergency room as well as chiropractic offices can be high sources of people just wanting relief of their immediate pain, with seldom concern for addressing the underlying problem. They want the “quick fix.”
When thinking about quadrant two (non-urgent, yet important), think of important activities that you should be doing regularly that could have a large impact on your life. You might start to think about certain activities like juicing, fasting, green smoothies, brisk walks or runs, going to the gym, regular visits to massage therapist and the chiropractor, etc.
Now look at the examples and compare. Is it possible that regular attention to quadrant two just might cause there to be less need for quadrant one? This is just another way of saying that the healthier your regular habits are, then likely the healthier you will be, requiring less need of urgent emergency care because of pain that can affect your life in such a negative way?
Also notice that spending more time organizing your life around quadrant two is not only more healthy and more effective, it also requires intentionally planning ahead. It may require more meal planning, scheduled chiropractic or massage visits, and set aside times to exercise.
Quadrant two involves planning your life whereas quadrant one is running your health on default. Default is taking your health and your life for granted. This style of living leaves you at the whim of impulse moment to moment decisions that are focused on temporary pleasures.
Ultimately it is your decision how to run your days, weeks, and years. Regarding your health, my encouragement is that you make thoughtful, wise choices that would coincide with quadrant two.
Because if you take your health for granted, it just might go away. Don’t take it for granted.
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