Prioritising tasks can be challenging and we often find ourselves pulled in multiple directions—responding to emails, addressing team queries, and attending meetings. By the end of the day, despite being busy and exhausted, it can feel like none of your major tasks have been completed. But what if you could prioritise what truly matters? Welcome to Stephen Covey’s principle of “Big Rocks”.
Prioritising tasks, especially as a leader in an organisation, can be challenging. You often find yourself pulled in multiple directions—responding to emails, addressing team queries, attending meetings, and providing input on projects you’re not directly involved in.
By the end of the day, despite being busy and exhausted, it can sometimes feel like none of your major tasks have been completed. The big tasks remain untouched, postponed until tomorrow, and the cycle repeats itself until Friday.
But what if you could prioritise what truly matters? Firefly’s CEO, Kirsty Maynor, first shared Stephen Covey’s principle of big rocks in a bonus video on the Firefly Online Learning Library and you can watch the bonus video on our YouTube:
What is Stephen Covey’s principle of “Big Rocks”?
Picture an empty container representing your week. If you fill it first with small stones—emails, catch-ups, and minor tasks—you'll struggle to fit in the big rocks, the crucial tasks that should take priority and the “big rocks” that matter in any given week. The small stones consume so much space that the big rocks don’t fit, forcing you to juggle and defer essential priorities to the following week.
However, if you start with the big rocks first, something remarkable happens.
By prioritising the big rocks—the key projects and significant and meaningful tasks—you can fit them all into the container. When you then add the small stones, they find their way into the remaining spaces, and everything fits. You might even find you have space left over.
Prioritising your tasks and big rocks.
So identify what your big rocks are and prioritise putting them into your diary. From there, you can build everything else around that. Work on boundaries with your colleagues, and let them know when they can come to you with issues and when you need time to tackle those big rocks. This way, you can manage your workload better and avoid the stress of unfinished priorities and overflowing to-do lists.
We delve into this concept and much more in our Firefly Online Learning Library. If you aspire to be a more effective leader and build a high-performing team, our library offers all the resources you need - with practical insights and anecdotes like this, you'll discover tips that can positively impact your personal and professional life too.