Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Marissa Bracke.
Many of us grew up being told that we could play only after we finished our work, that we could have our dessert only after we ate all of our dinner, and that we could reward ourselves only after we good ‘n duly earned it. In some situations, this advice merits following: when your to-do list includes a sizable (and ever-growing) frog or two, you’re wise to tend to the frog and wipe from your to-do list that task you’ve been dreading.
Frogs, after all, can be helpful.
When you sit down at your desk determined to tackle the task you’ve most been dreading and subsequently accomplish it, you get that triumphant charge of a hurdle cleared, a crisis averted, a self-awarded pat on the back. The momentum from conquering that dreaded task can help you jump into your next (presumably less dreaded) task, eager to keep the glow of accomplishment you’ve already achieved.
But what happens when the frogs–and the momentum–are missing?
There will be days when your to-do list is relatively frog-free, and you’re faced with a list of tasks you’ve got to get done, but which don’t do much to rev up your motor. On the one hand, you’re jazzed that you don’t have any of those high-dread tasks to conquer. On the other hand, you don’t have access to the turbo-load of momentum that you get from crossing a high-dread task off the list. You want to get going, but you’re finding it hard to get some forward momentum from the tasks at hand.
Enter Mary Poppins and her secret ingredient to productive momentum: a spoonful of sugar.
Mary Poppins knew that sometimes the only way to put pep into a task-doer’s step was with a little sweet treat. Though she just declared that a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, the truth is that a little treat helps the momentum go up as well.
The key is to figuring out your “sugar.”
Everyone has some task that gives them a disproportionately high amount of satisfaction or delight. For example, one of my clients loves inputting her receipts into her bookkeeping software. She said she knows it’s “supposed” to be an undesirable task that everyone longs to outsource, but she enjoys the routine, organized process. Receipts are her “sugar” task. Another client told me that he was pretty sure he should delegate his audio editing, but that he gets a kick out of editing his own files and looks forward to doing so. Audio editing is a “sugar” task for him. One of my own sugar tasks is processing clients’ email inboxes. I find it really soothing (which works out well, since it’s usually not at all a sugar task for the clients).
If you consider your own tasks, you’ll probably notice a few that you really like. You’ll know you’ve identified a “sugar” task when the thought of just diving into it (not just crossing it off) gives you a little charge inside, and the thought of not doing it–or of handing it off to someone else–leaves you feeling disappointed. They’re still tasks (getting a massage or taking a hot bubble bath are treats, but not sugar tasks), but they’re ones you genuinely like.
Putting the sugar on top… of the to-do list
Both of my clients mentioned above (and I too) tend to push these tasks to the backburner. Because we enjoy them, we set them up as “rewards” that we access only when we finish a sufficient number of other less enjoyable tasks. And on some days, that’s effective. We work hard to plow through other tasks so we can indulge in the task we really dig.
But those tasks can also work to jumpstart momentum on days when it seems elusive.
On a day when you can’t seem to get the momentum revved up, try moving one of your “sugar” tasks to the top of your list. Let yourself jump into it above some of your other less sweet tasks, and let yourself enjoy it. Because you enjoy the task, you’re able to get into flow (and into momentum) without much conscious effort. By the time you’ve finished your spoonful of sugar, you’ve already achieved the most difficult part of productive momentum: getting started. You won’t have to try to kick things into gear on a task that you’re merely ambivalent about–you’re already in motion thanks to your sugar task.
Using sugar in moderation
There will be days when you’ve got to tackle the frog tasks first. Ignoring them in order to jump straight to the sugar task tends to be an ineffective long-term strategy. You can’t sugarcoat a frog… at least not for long, because the dread-to-work ratio eventually outweighs the positive jolt you get from your sweet task. But on the days when there aren’t any frogs lurking, or when you’re feeling mired by ambivalent inertia, a smartly utilized spoonful of sugar can re-fuel your productive momentum.
What’s your sugar task? Do you tend to use it as a reward, after the other tasks are done, or do you ever use it as your jumpstart? Does one style work better for you than the other?
Photo Credit: OnMyWayTo
Sugar should be in moderation, of course, but I think the only way I can ever get through a frog task is by having something to sweeten the situation. Any day that looks like it’s nothing but frogs is a day where I’ll probably wind up back in bed, accomplishing nothing.
I’m with you! I sometimes do just a little bit of the sugar task, just to get myself moving, and then jump over to a frog task, then back to a sugar task again. For me, that’s really effective on days when there are several frogs to be handled. Stacking them with sugar tasks ensures they actually get done, whereas a series of frogs by themselves would send me back to bed as well!
My sugar task is cleaning out my inboxes. I really love it.
I find that when I do these “sugar tasks” first it’s because I KNOW that there is something I should be doing instead. I prefer to use them as a reward after a hard days “work”.
It sounds silly to think of clearing out my inboxes as fun, but it really is… to me anyway.
It surprises me how often we tend to preface our favored tasks with, “I know this is silly, but…” or “I know I’m not supposed to like doing this, but…” I think it’s because whatever our favored task is, we probably know a bunch of people for whom it’s a frog task, so we sort of think of it as an oddity that we enjoy it. (That’s my best guess, anyway!)
I don’t think yours sounds silly–or at least no sillier than anyone else’s. 🙂
Exactly right, I feel like 99% of the inboxes I see are full so I always feel like it must be some strange fetish exclusive to me…. well, and C.A. who takes it to a whole different level with her ‘defrosting’ technique.
Mike, instead, I could have said ‘extinguishing’. It would have also well represented what I feel about my inbox 😉
My sugar task is also cleaning out my inbox. I call it ‘defrosting’ my inbox, which quickly turns into an iceberg if I don’t diminish it regularly 🙂
I’ve actually used your sugar method. And I admit it’s painful because I want to spend time in my inbox the first thing in the morning. But I discovered I can really get some good amount of work done if I postpone it toward midday (11:30 a.m. is fine) and enjoy it as a reward for completing numerous tasks. I don’t apply this method everyday although I really should.
By the way, the title put a smile on my face. I also have a post about Mary Poppins. But mine is about what entrepreneurs can learn from her 🙂
Ha–defrosting the inbox! I like that. The image of it quickly growing into an iceberg is a good one. Good metaphor.
Sprinkling some sugar in the middle of your day is definitely a great way to keep motivated. Whether the sugar task happens at the beginning, middle, or end of the day, if it’s helping propel you forward, then it’s serving its purpose!
“”˜defrosting’ my inbox” I LOVE that! My sugar task has been found!
You make a great point when you say a spoonful of sugar helps you get in the flow and up your momentum. I’ve seen this in action. So why do I fight it? It seems that I ration the sugar until I’ve accomplished enough and that’s always arbitrary. But I’m going to make a pointed effort of sprinkling a little more sugar atop my day.
What if I am a diabetic? Just kidding….
I like tasks that are orderly, even though most of my large tasks are creative, which I also love, but require more energy and momentum. So I would say my sugar task is balancing my checkbook/account – I love making it balance to the penny!
I think of it like a success snowball, but productive momentum is evocative too.
I like sending invoices (which I do at the end of each month) — it’s not just about the money 😉 but also about reminding myself of the good stuff I’ve done over the past four weeks.
I also really like fiddling with web code — I’m not a designer or coder at all, but I love that “aha!” of figuring something new out and making it work (even if I have to cludge things a bit).