Always remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee

A professor stood before his philosophy class with an empty mayonnaise jar sitting amid other items on his desk.


When the class began, he wordlessly proceeded to fill the mayonnaise jar with golf balls. He then asked the students if they thought the jar was full. They agreed that it was.


He then poured a bag of pebbles into the jar. As he gently shook it, the pebbles rolled into areas the golf balls couldn't fill. He asked the students, again, if they thought the jar was full. They agreed that it was.


Next, he poured in the bag of sand which settled into even more spaces.
Once again, he queried the students and they agreed the jar was full.


Silently, he poured two cups of coffee into the jar. The students laughed.


'Now I will explain this experiment,' the professor said.


The jar is your life.
The golf balls are important things like family, children, health, friends, passions. If you lost everything but these things, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are other things that matter like your job, the car or your house. If you lost these things, you could still go on.
The sand is everything else--the small stuff.


Now, if you put the sand in first, there is no room for anything else. As in life, if you spend all your time on the 'small stuff' there is no room for the really important things.


So, take care of the golf balls first. Set your priorities.

Play with your children.

Get medical checkups. 

Enjoy the garden.

Have a quiet dinner with your partner.

Nap on the couch with your kids in your arms.

The rest is just sand. There will always be time to clean the house or talk to online friends later.'


After a few moments of thoughtful silence, one of the students raised her hand and asked what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled and answered simply, 'It just goes to show that, no matter how full your life may seem, there is always time for a cup or two of coffee with a friend.'