One day , an expert in time management was speaking
to a group of business students and, to drive home
a point, used an illustration those students will never forget.
As he stood in front of the group of high-powered overachievers
he said, "Okay, time for a quiz" and he pulled out a one-gallon,
wide mouth Mason jar and set it on the table in front of him.
He also produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully
placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled
to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked,
"Is the jar full?" Everyone in the class yelled. "Yes."
The time management expert replied, "Really?"
He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel.
He dumped some gravel in & shook the jar causing pieces
of gravel to work themselves down into the spaces between
the big rocks. He then asked the group once more,
"Is the jar full?" By this time the class was on to him.
"Probably not," one of them answered. "Good!" he replied.
He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand.
He started dumping the sand in the jar and it went into all
the spaces left between the rocks and gravel. Once more
he asked the question, "Is this jar full?" "No!" the class
shouted. Once again he said, "Good." Then he grabbed a pitcher
of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim.
Then he looked at the class and asked, "What is the point
of this illustration?"