Putting First Things First

The title of this blog entry may have similarity to Stephen R. Covey’s writing but I'm not about to prophecies his writing or teaching here (at least not according to his text). The last thing I need is a copyright lawsuit.

Don’t we all get caught at times doing our prioritizing in Rotaract? - or to be more precise - putting the importance between club projects, district projects, and personal projects. Personally, I encountered many instances. Does the following questions sound familiar to you?

a) Should I volunteer for the district project committee or my own club project committee?
b) Should I skip classes to attend my club meeting this weekend?
c) Should I attend my grandma’s 70th birthday celebration or the District Conference?
d) Should I cancel my appointment with my family or the club members?

Oh! These questions do pose a treat to us, don’t they? How many of us did give Rotaract related activities more priority in the above circumstances. I personally was one of the pro-Rotaract individuals in several instances. I am sure there are a few grins from most of you while reading this.

So, what are you trying to say here, Terence? (Some of you may ask) We should forego our responsibilities in Rotaract when we face such circumstances?

It is not what Terence says that counts. It is what YOU say that really matters. Remember WIIFM? You may use it at such circumstance. Nevertheless, do have your guiding principles.

If you should ask about my guiding principles....

FAMILY comes before WORK;
WORK comes before ROTARACT;
ROTARACT comes before ROTARY.

In another perspective,

My CLUB comes before the DISTRICT;
My Sponsoring ROTARY CLUB comes before the DISTRICT;
The DISTRICT comes before OTHER CLUBS.

I’ve lived my Rotaract years by these principles. Do they hold true? Do they work? I believe they did for me.

There is no CLUB, if there is no ME;
There is no DISTRICT if there are no CLUBS.

I hope you now know where to put YOU first. Remember, it is always your call. You call the shots Rotaractor, and you live with it.