If you know you have to swallow a frog, swallow it first thing in the morning. If there are two frogs, swallow the big one first. – Mark Twain
You know how it goes. You wake up in the morning, and there it is. Ribbit!
You pour your morning coffee, and there it is looking at you. Ribbit!
As you’re working and glance at the clock, there it is looking back at you. Ribbit!
It’s that task or project that you don’t want to do. You know you’ve got to do it, but instead you put it off. Maybe you’ll feel like doing it later.
You won’t.
You’re never going to want to call the IRS. You’re never going to want to snake the hair out of the shower drain. That hard conversation will never be on your “Things I Want To Do Today” list.
Swallowing your daily frog first thing in the morning assures you that, if nothing else, you complete that one thing for the day. Leaving it hanging there may make it such that you don’t get anything else done from worrying about it.
There’s also this: getting those things done first thing in the morning often provides additional motivation to complete a lot of other things that day.
After all, if you’ve already swallowed a couple of frogs, can the day really get any worse?
But wait — what about the whole “plan your day by your productive capacity” bit?
(New readers: if you haven’t heard me talk about this, then the best place to start is How to Be a Productive Powerhouse Using Time Blocking.)
Generally, having those things that you want to do hanging over you ensures that you won’t be at your productive peak due to distraction. Remember, decreasing distractions and increasing motivation makes you more productive.
For those frogs that really can’t be done first thing in the morning — either because of the context or availability of other people or your energy — you’ll want to do them as soon as you can. While it’s true that first things first isn’t about sequence, it’s still true that a frog will sit on the log that is your brain until it’s handled. As long as it’s there, it’ll make everything else that much harder to finish.
While we’re on frogs, a frog a day keeps your anchors aweigh better than letting them build up. Because if one frog harasses you enough to want to put it off, an entire day of frog-handling is something you’ll put off even more.
Get after that daily frog — You’ve got this!
Oh, so true. When I put off the project I’ve been dreading (and don’t we always have at least one of those on our plates?) it wrecks the whole day. I consistently try to tackle it first thing in the morning. The sort of wake-up-start-work-don’t-think-just-do-it tactic. Doesn’t always work, but when I get the thing I’m dreading done before lunch? Ah, what a lovely feeling.
Quiet Rebel Writer’s last blog post..Writers Who Matter: Octavia Butler, Sci-Fi Rebel
@ Amy (QRW): That feeling is exactly what prompted me to write this post. Of course, the frog I was swallowing was a day’s worth of grading, so I didn’t get to do the fun stuff – but it needed to be done nonetheless.
[…] One little thing I’ve found that works for me is to schedule the tasks I most enjoy doing for the end of my work day. I can have a pretty good day, but if the last hour is shit then I think I had a shitty day. Ending on a positive note can turn a bad day into a good one. (Charlie from Productive Flourishing made a similar point here.) […]
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I have found if I put something off long enuf, one or more of the following will happen: 1) I lose it, so out of site out of mind 2) my client will eventually call me about it at which time I have the opportunity to explain to them how I am so covered up but I’ve made them my #1 priority so I scored some points there 3) I ask one of my staff to handle it (will help them gain valuable knowledge & skill which will look great on their resume) 4) I put it in my in basket which is kinda like when my dog buries a bone in the back yard, again, out of site… 5) I eventually find it, again, and put it on my new “priority to do list”. By this time I’ve forgotten why I didn’t do it way back then. Now when my client calls, again, my staff can tell them I’m not at my desk; however they can see the task is on my brand new “Priority To do: List” and has a star next to it at which time I score some more “indirect” points. Finally, after a couple more calls from my client I have to pull out the old “I don’t recall seeing it come in. How did you send it because we’ve been having problems with the US Postal Service and may not have received it?” My client says they’ve been having problems too. By this time they can’t remember either and I’ve had four months of not having to deal with it and now come out the hero and score major points when I tell them I will come in on Saturday just so I can help them out since it’s so obvious the Post Office is at fault. Of course if they sent it via email I’m doomed. But then I could always… no, I’m pretty much doomed.
[…] Generally, having those things that you want to do hanging over you ensures that you won’t be at your productive peak due to distraction. Remember, decreasing distractions and increasing motivation makes you more productive. via productiveflourishing.com […]
Thanks for the post. It inspired me to also blog about it here! I made sure to put a link to your blog in my header. Keep up the great work!
http://www.missionmusings.com/2011/02/do-worst-thing-first.html
[…] comment was in response to Amber’s mentioning (via Pam Slim) Charlie Gilkey’s concept of swallowing a frog ”” every day! An interesting concept, methinks, because whenever I opened that closet and found […]
[…] first heard this from Pam Slim, and she got it from Charlie Gilkey, who took it from Mark […]
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[…] things just keep on working their way to the bottom, I know this is bad and I know that I should swallow that frog first thing in the morning. Here is a shot tool to help you get on top of your ‘to-do’ list and maximise your […]