Many of us overestimate how much we can get done in a day, but often underestimate what we can get done in a year. So, in order to achieve our daily, weekly or yearly goals without getting overwhelmed, we need to develop habits that allow us to be more positive and productive.
This is where eating the frog comes in. This oddly named productivity method is ideal if you tend to do the following:
- Procrastinate
- Rush around getting a lot done but not actually progressing on the important things
- Have a hard time sticking with a productivity method
- Have trouble deciding what to work on
- Often feel overwhelmed with your to-do list
The Eat the Frog Story
Mark Twain said that if the first thing you do each morning is eat a live frog, you can go through the day with the satisfaction of knowing that it’s probably the worst thing that’s going to happen all day.
But, you don’t have to eat a live frog to be successful. Think about your ‘frog’ as your biggest challenge or most important task – the one you’re most likely to procrastinate over, if you don’t buckle down and get it done.
So, basically eating the frog is another way of saying get the biggest, hardest and most important job done first. Then the rest of your day will be easy. Get into the habit of starting that hard task right away, and working on it until it’s completed before moving on to somethin else.
It’s easy to look at your to-do list and think you have so much to do that you can’t possibly focus on just one thing. But, if you get pulled into too many different directions, you risk getting overwhelmed and then it’s hard to get anything done.
You shouldn’t complete that one hard task and then relax for the rest of the day. You’ll still focus on your other tasks. But, eating that frog and getting the most important, and often the most difficult task out of the way, you’ll feel great about yourself and more inclined to dig into those smaller tasks.
Why Does Eating the Frog Work?
Even if you use one of the other productivity methods we’ve talked about, or one of your own. It’s a good idea to adopt the eat the frog method. It works, and works well because:
It Helps You Form a Deep Work Habit
Many times, the most valuable tasks are those that require you to focus on one thing. However, today’s workplace isn’t usually set up to support deep-work because there’s often too many distractions. We are often bombarded with emails, slack messages, on-the-fly requests and even family, which leaves us little time to focus on those valuable tasks.
With the eat the frog method, you’ll push back against those distractions (including our own internal distractions) and prioritize the task at hand.
It Lets You Set Your Own Agenda
If you’re anything like me, the first thing you do every day is check emails and messages. However, this can put you in a reactive mode because once you start responding, you’ve given your time and attention to what other people want or need – and this can quickly overwhelm your work day. With the eat the frog method, you put your own agenda first, before any email or message requests take over your day.
It Sets You Up to Win
As I said earlier, everyone tends to overestimate what they can get done in a day – it’s human nature. That’s why some productivity methods leave us feeling like we’re constantly failing and falling behind. And, when we feel bad, we tend to avoid the more difficult tasks and focus on the quick and easy ones, because they make us feel better. In other words, we probably all procrastinate at times.
The eat the frog method lets you focus on one thing at a time. Also, this method allows you to make progress on something important every day. Studies have proven that this is a key motivator and vital for happiness and engagement at work. We tend to feel good when we’ve accomplished something major, which in turn, motivates us to get more done.
It Helps You Take Advantage of Your Best Working Hours
We all know that every hour in the work day is not equal. The first hour or two is usually when you have the most energy, willpower and motivation – then, if you’re like me, the hour after lunch is one where you just want to lay down and take a nap. Eating the frog ensures you spend your best hours doing your most important tasks, leaving the less important ones when you’re more tired and your brain power is depleted.
It’s Flexible and Simple
Every productivity method we’ve talked about has its advantages. But, eating the frog is extremely simple, and one you can fall back on quickly and easily. And, it’s very flexible. It doesn’t matter what your goals are or what tasks you have to complete, you can always apply the eat the frog method.
How to Eat the Frog
As I said, eating the frog is super simple. You just:
- Choose Your Frog – Decide on your most important task for the day, the one you find yourself resisting and procrastinating about.
- Dedicate 1-4 Hours of the Day to Your Frog – Typically, your frog should take up to half your work day at the most. When the task is realistic and clearly defined, it will be easier to stop procrastinating and get started. And checking that task off your list by lunch time will give you a sense of accomplishment and an endorphin boost to take you through the afternoon.
- If Necessary, Break it Into Smaller Steps – Some tasks are huge, or take a lot of hours. If your frog is going to take more than half your day, break it down into smaller steps. Then once you’ve completed step 1, your next frog is step 2.
- Don’t Plan too far Ahead – If you break things down into smaller steps, you may be tempted to schedule your frogs for an entire week – Don’t. It’s almost impossible to accurately plan tasks and it will set you up for falling behind, disappointment and more procrastination. With eating the frog it’s important to start fresh every morning with a single focus, so choose and tackle your frogs daily..
- Prepare Tomorrow’s Frogs and the End of Today – Spend the last few minutes of your work day identifying your frog for tomorrow. If possible, close down all tabs on your computer except for the frog you want to work on. That will help remind you to focus as soon as you login the next day.
- Eat That Frog First Thing in the Morning – It doesn’t matter what your frog is, eat it as soon as you start work. If you’re not a morning person, no worries, the eat the frog method works for whatever time of the day you feel more productive, energized and focused.
If you decide to try eating the frog leave us a comment and let us know how it works for you.