History of Priority Thinking®

Priority Thinking® has always existed in some sense. In fact, here at the Institute, we credit Aristotle with the philosophical core of what is now Priority Thinking in its modern form and application.

In 1993, our founder and president discovered the power of Priority Thinking in the real world while working as an operations manager responsible for over 1,000 employees and the production of thousands of RayBan sunglasses each day. Any operations leader, who has truly immersed themselves in the demands of production, knows the daily tension of achieving the demands of a manufacturing plant to deliver a product on time but with exceptional quality and at the lowest cost. Priority Thinking was borne out of this tension and a realization that sound priorities are more than balancing competing interests and demands. Sound priorities are based in our understanding of time and principles.

From 1997 to 2000, the Priority Thinking structure grew beyond a set of daily operating priorities to the discovery of behavioral and leadership priorities. This portion of the model was launched into a large production facility in Mexico and, then, expanded to an even larger production and distribution operation in San Antonio, Texas. The remainder of the Priority Thinking® system was discovered and applied during this four year period. Later as the COO for a company in Connecticut, the concepts of Priority Thinking were applied with great success in growing the top and bottom-line of the total business, even helping to navigate the company through a severe crisis. The model continued to grow through daily use and application.

Ten years after discovering and applying the power of Priority Thinking®, our company leader left corporate life to found this Institute in 2003 with the purpose of helping leaders and their organizations to benefit from the practice of Priority Thinking®. Much of our focus in assisting organizations begins with its leaders. We have found that Priority Thinking® works best when leaders embrace its principles and internalize them first. When leaders begin to role model the priorities, the quality and speed of their decision making improves greatly. Thus, our executive coaching and organizational consulting model is philosophically centered on the principles of Priority Thinking®.

Many of our clients have become avid practitioners and believers in the principles and power of Priority Thinking® to transform their organizations. These leaders and their employees are extending and applying the model to their own businesses with great success. We invite you to join us in discovering the power of Priority Thinking® to help you and your organization prosper.