---
title: "2 First things Quotes By Greg McKeown"
description: "2 First things quotes by Greg McKeown. Plus more from Greg McKeown and more First things sayings from other authors."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45c/greg-mckeown-8740_doe_the-word-priority-was-singular-for-500-y_106193.png"
---

> [The word priority was singular for 500 years—what does priorities mean—'many many first things.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/the-word-priority-was-singular-for-500-years-what-does-priorities/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45c/greg-mckeown-8740_doe_the-word-priority-was-singular-for-500-y_106193.png)

> [“The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. It stayed singular for the next five hundred years. Only in the 1900s did we pluralise the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/the-word-priority-came-into-the-english-language-in-the-1400s-it-was/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/greg-mckeown-8740_able_the-word-priority-came-into-the-english_178399.jpg)

## More by Greg McKeown

> [If I didn’t already own this, how much would I spend to buy it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/if-i-didn-t-already-own-this-how-much-would-i-spend-to-buy-it/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [The word priority was singular for 500 years—what does priorities mean—'many many first things.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/the-word-priority-was-singular-for-500-years-what-does-priorities/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“Sleep will enhance your ability to explore, make connections, and do less but better throughout your waking hours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/sleep-will-enhance-your-ability-to-explore-make-connections-and-do/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“Of course, nobody likes to be bored. But by abolishing any chance of being bored we have also lost the times we used to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/of-course-nobody-likes-to-be-bored-but-by-abolishing-any-chance-of/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. It stayed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/the-word-priority-came-into-the-english-language-in-the-1400s-it-was/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“while we may not always have control over our options, we always have control over how we choose among them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/while-we-may-not-always-have-control-over-our-options-we-always-have/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. It stayed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/the-word-priority-came-into-the-english-language-in-the-1400s-it-was-2/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“Essentialism is not about how to get more things done; it’s about how to get the right things done. It doesn’t mean just doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/essentialism-is-not-about-how-to-get-more-things-done-it-s-about-how/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“the faintest pencil is better than the strongest memory”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/the-faintest-pencil-is-better-than-the-strongest-memory/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“I have since gathered data from more than five hundred individuals about their experience on more than one thousand teams. I asked them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/i-have-since-gathered-data-from-more-than-five-hundred-individuals/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [Take a deep breath. Get present in the moment and ask yourself what is important this very second.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/take-a-deep-breath-get-present-in-the-moment-and-ask-yourself-what-is/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“Less but better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/less-but-better/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“For the first time, they will have to manage themselves. And society is totally unprepared for it.”4”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/for-the-first-time-they-will-have-to-manage-themselves-and-society-is/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“I must apologize: if I had more time I would have written a shorter letter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/i-must-apologize-if-i-had-more-time-i-would-have-written-a-shorter/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

> [“up in four predictable phases:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mckeown/up-in-four-predictable-phases/)

[Greg McKeown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mckeown/)

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