Time for what's important

As ASGA grows, the demands on my time as executive director are formidable. I could literally work 24 hours a day.

But I don't. My wife, children, and I have dinner together every night. Not only do we eat together, but we also read and discuss issues, laugh, and hear about the day's event and activities. I listen to what each of them has to say and what concerns or problems they may be having. Sometimes dinner lasts two hours.

It is an example of my focus on what is really important to me. I MAKE time to spend with my wife and children and it's not just scheduled to get it over with. It's a real time that matters to all of us.

Lately, with the price of gas, I have limited my trips into the office (I have a 40-minute commute), and instead am working two or three days from my home. This lets me play with the children, read to them, work around the house, and even go with them to events, like the local library talent show in which they performed last week.

All of this is intended to show that I'm trying to make time for what's important in my life. Student Government certainly isn't the reason I exist. Professionally, it is very important to me, and I see how our work can have lasting impact long-term.

But we should be more than our professions. We should do more than just our jobs. We must make time for what's truly important.