Stephen Covey’s story about the “big rocks” is well known. In brief, a teacher shows her students a container, and fills the container with fist-sized rocks. She asks, “Is the container full?” The students answer, “Yes!” Then the teacher pours in sand. “Is the container full?” Now the students are wiser, and answer no. Then the teacher pours in water and declares that the container is full. She asks, “What is the lesson?” One bright student responds, “You can fit a little more in the bucket!” The teacher responds, “No. The lesson is that unless you put the big rocks in first, they will never fit.”
