I’ve had my normally happy little world rocked by hard luck in the last week, and unfortunately (and totally coincidentally) so have several of my close friends. And while everything has turned out alright, these trials got me thinking about what’s really important in life... and my tendency to lose track of those things in the everyday shuffle.

We’ve all been there. Your gas tank’s running on empty, your MP3 player broke two days after the warranty ran out, you have to get to the grocery store in between work and your evening Pilates class, and let’s not even talk about your roommate’s dishes that have been in the sink for three weeks. But when some outside force threatens that which is truly valuable, those everyday worries melt away, suddenly seeming frivolous and unimportant.

There is a quote from Goethe has been particularly inspirational to me this week: “The things which matter the most must never be at the mercy of the things which matter least.” Allow me to take this opportunity to reveal to you that I am secretly a total sap. Here’s the proof: I want to encourage you—in  your day-to-day lives, in your career decisions, in your life—to  discover that which is truly important to you, and to fiercely protect it. Whether or not that thing is important to society or to others is irrelevant—if it holds value for you, my advice is to defend and nurture it to the best of your ability.

Reminders that we’ve lost track of what’s important are often unexpected and sometimes cruel. Take a moment today to check in with yourself and make sure what really matters to you isn’t getting too cold over there on the back burner. And if you have a second, give a loved one a call in between work and Pilates. They’d love to hear from you.

What's important to you? Comment here...