The first step to total water management is accomplished by admitting that there is a limited water resource that must be protected. It requires utilities and regulatory agencies to acknowledge that water is a limited resource, to address quantity and quality issues, and to establish resource allocations based on priorities. In all phases of the water cycle, the two key parameters to address are quantity and quality. Water utility managers who, historically, have provided water treatment and the delivery of water are now being asked to step forward and look at source protection of quantity and quality, conservation as part of the delivery of water, new system services, environmental education for the customer, ultimate disposal of the water, and reuse options. It is important that managers shift their paradigm and make daily water decisions with a total water management awareness.