Preparation

"The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining"
John F Kennedy

Preparation is essential. You need to be aware of the fact that the roof is leaking, as well as what problems that is likely to create in the future. Most people go through life, really not very aware of what is going on around them. They tend to focus on whatever the most urgent job is at the time and forget about everything else. They deal with the boss's report that they have to finish by tomorrow morning, or the kids begging for attention, or the phone ringing or some other distraction. By the time they've dealt with all that, they crash in front of the T.V. The roof never gets looked at, until it's too late.

It is crucial to prioritize things. Stephen Covey suggests dividing your tasks into Quadrant 1 (Urgent and Important (typically refered to as crises or problems)), Quadrant 2 (Important but not Urgent), Quadrant 3 (Urgent but not Important), and Quadrant 4 (neither Important or Urgent). He suggests staying out of Quadrants 3 and 4 altogether, and shrinking the size of Quadrant 1 by spending more time in Quadrant 2. This Quadrant 2 of course would be the one in which the task of repairing the roof on a sunny day would fall. When you do that, you would avoid the Quadrant 1 task of having to deal with a flooded house.

As you know, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Act now before a task becomes a crisis. The time to prepare the roof is when the sun is shining.

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