If You’re Not On The Agenda, You’re On The Menu

I was at a procurement law course earlier this week, and our presenter said something that stopped my mind in its tracks:

 

You’re either on the agenda, or you’re on the menu.

 

Immediately, I pictured a bunch of fish at a boardroom table haggling over who was going to be on the agenda, and therefore not on the menu (the scene above).

Then, I started to wonder how that applied to my life:

  • Am I on other people’s agenda or on their menu?

  • Am I on my own agenda, or on my own menu?

What does it even mean?

Good question. First, let’s look at what it means to be on your agenda:

  • What’s in your calendar? When you map out your day, what do you decide to do?

  • What do you do that isn’t mapped out? Do you squeeze in some youtube? Instagram? Do you sneak out to the gym? Call a loved one?

  • Where do you spend your emotional energy? What are you thinking about? Worrying about?

That’s what’s on your agenda.

What does it mean to be on the menu? Being on the menu means:

  1. That it’s not on the agenda (and therefore not being prioritized).

  2. That it’s being eaten (and therefore being sacrified).

I particularly like the visual of the metaphor. Is your health on your agenda? Nope, it was on the menu. And now it’s gone - because you ate it.

So whatever is on the menu is being sacrificed to serve the agenda.

What does this mean for you?

So, it means that you’re either:

  1. prioritizing something by giving it your resources (your time, attention, and, likely, money), or

  2. (intentionally or unintentionally) sacrificing something by starving it of resources.

We have a finite amount of time and a finite amount of energy, so we can’t put everything on the agenda. Some things will need to go on the menu. Are you setting your menu intentionally?

What are your priorities? If you’re anything like most of us, your list includes: family, health, career, fulfillment.

Now look at your agenda - is your health on it? How much time do you spend on your fulfillment? How much time when you’re with your family are you actually present?

What do you prioritize? What will you prioritize?

Paul KarvanisComment