When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cans of beer.
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes.'
The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things—your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions—and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else—the small stuff. 'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first—the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.'
The beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of beers with a friend.
當(dāng)你發(fā)現(xiàn)生活中的事情似乎總做不完，一天24小時仍不夠用的時候，別忘了蛋黃醬罐子和兩罐啤酒。上哲學(xué)課前，教授站在講臺上，面前放著一些東西。一上課，他不先講課，而是拿出一個很大的空的蛋黃醬罐子，并往里面放高爾夫球。然后，他問學(xué)生：“罐子裝滿了嗎？”學(xué)生都說：“滿了”。
然后，教授拿起一盒礫石投入罐子里。輕輕地一搖，礫石就滾進(jìn)高爾夫球間的空隙。然后，他又問學(xué)生：“罐子裝滿了嗎？”學(xué)生依然回答：“滿了”。
接著，教授又拿起一盒沙子倒入罐子里。當(dāng)然，沙子可以填滿其他所有的間隙。他又問：“罐子裝滿了嗎？”學(xué)生一致地回答：“滿了”。
后來，教授又從桌下拿出兩罐啤酒，打開倒進(jìn)罐子里，更好地填滿沙子間的間隙。學(xué)生們笑了。
等到笑聲落下，教授說：“現(xiàn)在，我要讓你們認(rèn)識到這個罐子象征了你們的生活。高爾夫球代表的是重要的東西－家庭，孩子，健康，朋友和興趣愛好。即使你失去其他所有的東西，但只要還擁有這些，你的生活仍然豐富多彩。
礫石代表其他重要的東西（除上面提到的外），如工作，房子及汽車。
沙子則代表其他一些次重要的東西。他接著說：“如果你先把沙子倒入罐子里，就沒有空間容納礫石和高爾夫球了。生活也如此。如果你把所有的時間和精力放在小事情上，那么你不可能做那些有重要意義的事了。
請留意那些與你幸福相關(guān)的事情：多花時間陪孩子和父母，與祖父母聊天，做健康檢查，與愛人共進(jìn)晚餐，還有做其他有重要意義的事。你總會有時間來打掃房子和改變布置的。把高爾夫球放在首位，也就是把真正重要的事情放在首位。確定了重要的事情，其余的就是“沙子”。
這時，一個學(xué)生舉手問道：“老師，那啤酒代表什么呢？”
教授笑著回答：“我很高興聽到你提問這個問題。啤酒是告訴你，不管你的生活看起來多么豐富多彩，它仍有容納朋友的空間。”
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes.'
The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things—your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions—and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else—the small stuff. 'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first—the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.'
The beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of beers with a friend.
當(dāng)你發(fā)現(xiàn)生活中的事情似乎總做不完，一天24小時仍不夠用的時候，別忘了蛋黃醬罐子和兩罐啤酒。上哲學(xué)課前，教授站在講臺上，面前放著一些東西。一上課，他不先講課，而是拿出一個很大的空的蛋黃醬罐子，并往里面放高爾夫球。然后，他問學(xué)生：“罐子裝滿了嗎？”學(xué)生都說：“滿了”。
然后，教授拿起一盒礫石投入罐子里。輕輕地一搖，礫石就滾進(jìn)高爾夫球間的空隙。然后，他又問學(xué)生：“罐子裝滿了嗎？”學(xué)生依然回答：“滿了”。
接著，教授又拿起一盒沙子倒入罐子里。當(dāng)然，沙子可以填滿其他所有的間隙。他又問：“罐子裝滿了嗎？”學(xué)生一致地回答：“滿了”。
后來，教授又從桌下拿出兩罐啤酒，打開倒進(jìn)罐子里，更好地填滿沙子間的間隙。學(xué)生們笑了。
等到笑聲落下，教授說：“現(xiàn)在，我要讓你們認(rèn)識到這個罐子象征了你們的生活。高爾夫球代表的是重要的東西－家庭，孩子，健康，朋友和興趣愛好。即使你失去其他所有的東西，但只要還擁有這些，你的生活仍然豐富多彩。
礫石代表其他重要的東西（除上面提到的外），如工作，房子及汽車。
沙子則代表其他一些次重要的東西。他接著說：“如果你先把沙子倒入罐子里，就沒有空間容納礫石和高爾夫球了。生活也如此。如果你把所有的時間和精力放在小事情上，那么你不可能做那些有重要意義的事了。
請留意那些與你幸福相關(guān)的事情：多花時間陪孩子和父母，與祖父母聊天，做健康檢查，與愛人共進(jìn)晚餐，還有做其他有重要意義的事。你總會有時間來打掃房子和改變布置的。把高爾夫球放在首位，也就是把真正重要的事情放在首位。確定了重要的事情，其余的就是“沙子”。
這時，一個學(xué)生舉手問道：“老師，那啤酒代表什么呢？”
教授笑著回答：“我很高興聽到你提問這個問題。啤酒是告訴你，不管你的生活看起來多么豐富多彩，它仍有容納朋友的空間。”