The Four M's: A Framework for Evaluating What Belongs in Your Life

Many years ago, I designed a simple rubric to help me evaluate the activities in my life.

At the time, I was feeling overwhelmed. There were so many things I wanted to do, needed to do, and felt called to do. Many of those activities were competing for the same limited resource, my time.

I wanted to live a balanced life. I wanted to invest in my family, grow in my faith, take care of my health, and continue to develop professionally. The problem was that everything seemed important. No matter how much I prayed about it, the day stubbornly remained only 24 hours long.

Something had to give.

What could I eliminate? What could I reduce? What truly deserved a place on my calendar?

Creating this rubric brought clarity.

It gave me a practical way to evaluate my activities instead of simply reacting to whatever felt most urgent. I discovered that many things were valuable, but not all things carried the same weight. Understanding which category an activity belonged to helped me see it as part of my whole life rather than as an isolated demand on my time.

That perspective made it easier to determine whether an activity was supporting my overall goals or simply keeping me busy.

I hope this rubric helps you as much as it helped me.

Take a look at it and consider your own commitments, obligations, and opportunities.

What changes might you make in light of this rubric?

Would you eliminate something?

Reduce something?

Add something?

Or perhaps simply become more intentional about where you’re investing your time and energy.