Today's TQ

Daily Lessons in Intentional Excellence
Monday, February 23, 2026

When The Fan Turns On, Does Your Brain Turn Off?

Don't over react to urgencies. You may need to solve the urgent immediately, but first make a plan. Ask yourself one more time, "How else could this be resolved?"

When next faced with something urgent, take a mini time-out. Weigh the consequences of action vs. non-action. Review multiple options before plunging ahead.

Today's TQ Challenge: Remain Focused on Preplanned Priorities.

Choose to be RESPONSIVE! When confronted by your last urgency, did you consider all available options before you responded?
Choose to be PREDETERMINED! After you come up with an answer, do you ever ask yourself, "How else... ?"
Choose to be FOCUSED! How will you address the next emergency with the least effort and most benefit?

Urgencies are a fact of life. There will always be emergencies that demand your attention. The key is to handle them without getting pulled off course from your preplanned priorities. You are never the most productive when you are continuously enmeshed in low value, time consuming urgencies. Time spent improving your systems -- and planning ahead to prevent low-grade urgencies -- is a wiser investment than time spent administering emergency relief.

"Time = Life. Therefore, waste your time and waste of your life, or master your time and master your life." ~ Alan Lakein

Think about it. How well and how often do you actually DO Prioritize Factor 6I?

"I handle urgencies as required without losing focus on my preplanned priorities."

A high commitment (6I rated 8 or better) suggests you can take what life throws at you, and still stay focused on what you want to accomplish. With a list of daily priorities firmly in place, you take care of urgencies quickly, and immediately get back on track. You respond to demands and interruptions without losing touch with your plans and priorities. Understanding that urgencies disrupt plans, you are constantly looking ahead. You do whatever you can to make sure all your bases are covered, so you won't be pulled away by an emergency at the last minute.

On the other hand...

A lack of commitment suggests you allow your urgencies to be more important than your priorities. You find it hard to get back to your original priorities whenever an urgency interrupts you. You have the mistaken belief that just because something is demanding, it's more important, and you don't stop to consider if the urgency actually deserves your attention. It may not even occur to you to try to prevent these recurring demands from interrupting you in the future.

What happens when you CHOOSE to do Factor 6I a bit more frequently?

Urgencies are resolved without taking over your daily priorities. You accumulate performance positives like "Preemptive, Responsive and Committed" -- immediately moving you towards the results you expect.

What happens when you FAIL to consistently do Factor 6I?

You are a slave to time wasting, priority busting, energy depleting urgencies. Negatives like "Diverted, Reactive and Stressed" start to take their toll on your performance -- quickly moving you away from the success you want.

Now Ask Yourself This...
Is Factor 6I Causing You Problems?

If you believe this factor is a key performance obstacle -- and that it's preventing you from realizing your personal dreams and goals -- then you need to improve it.

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