Inspiration Came in a Mayonnaise Jar

Weigh what's important in life ...

A college professor stood at the front of his philosophy class with some items on the table in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a large empty mayonnaise jar and began to fill it with golf balls. When the balls were at the top, he asked the students if the jar was full. “Yes.”

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured all of the pebbles into the jar. He shook the jar lightly so the pebbles would roll into all of the open areas in between the golf balls. He asked the students again if the jar was full. “Yes.”

The professor then picked up a box of sand and slowly poured it into the jar so it filtered down and filled up any spaces that were left between everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. This time, the students responded with a resounding, "Yes!"

The professor smiled. Then, he produced two cups of coffee from a shelf under the table in front of him. Without saying a word, he poured both cups into the jar, effectively filling the mayonnaise jar to the very brim. The students all laughed.

"Now, it’s full." said the professor, as the laughter subsided. "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

The golf balls are all of the important things in your life: church, spouse, children, health, parents, friends, and your passions. These are all things that, if everything else was lost and only these things remained, your life would still be a full life.

The pebbles are the smaller things that matter to you, like your job, your pet, your house, your snowmobile, your hobbies, and your car. Add more of your own —there are a LOT of pebbles in this jar! The class laughed again.

Now, the sand represents everything else. You know, all the small stuff in your life."

The professor stood quietly for a few moments, watching the students' faces and allowing the information to sink in. Then he continued. "See, if you were to put the sand into the jar first, there would be no room at all for the pebbles or the golf balls.

The same goes for your life. If you spend all of your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the critical things, those things that are really important to your life. So, pay attention first to the things that are most critical to your happiness:

Be one with your spirituality.
Spend time with your parents and siblings.
Play with your children.
Take time to get medical, vision, and dental checkups.
Call your friends.
Keep your finances up to date and in order.
Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the dripping faucet. Take care of the golf balls first. Those are the things that really matter in your life. Set your priorities first. All of the rest is just ... pebbles and sand."

One of the students raised her hand. She asked the professor what the coffee represented. The professor smiled again.

"I'm glad you asked. The coffee just goes in there to show you that, no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

[Author Unknown]

Poet/Writer/Author of 5 books.
Quora Top Writer 2018.
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