The Truth About Frogs
Mark Twain once said that if the first thing you do each morning is to eat a live frog, you can go through the day with the satisfaction of knowing that that is probably the worse things that is going to happen to you all day long. Your “frog” is your biggest, most important task, the one you are most likely to procrastinate on if you don’t do something about it.
If You Have to Eat Two Frogs, Eat the Ugliest one First
This is another way of saying that if you have two important tasks before you, start with the biggest, hardest, and most important task first. Discipline yourself to begin immediately and then to persist until the task is complete before you go on to something else.
If You Have to Eat a Live Frog at all, it Doesn’t Pay to Sit and Look at it for Very Long
The key to reaching high levels of performance and productivity is to develop the lifelong habit of tackling your major task first thing each morning. You must develop the routine of “eating your frog” before you do anything else and without taking too much time to think about it.
Take Action Immediately
Successful, effective people are those who launch directly into their major tasks and then discipline themselves to work steadily and single-mindedly until those tasks are complete. “Failure to execute” is one of the biggest problems in organizations today. Many people confuse activity with accomplishment. They talk continually, hold endless meetings, and make wonderful plans, but in the final analysis, no one does the job and gets the results required.
Develop a Positive Addiction
You can actually develop a “positive addiction” to endorphins and to the feeling of enhanced clarity, confidence, and competence that they trigger. When you develop this addiction, you will, at an unconscious level, begin to organize your life in such a way that you are continually starting and completing ever more important tasks and projects. You will actually become addicted, in a very positive sense, to success and contribution.
No Shortcuts
Practice is the key to mastering any skill. Fortunately, your mind is like a muscle. It grows stronger and more capable with use. With practice, you can learn any behavior or develop any habit that you consider either desirable or necessary.
Action Exercise
What is your “frog?” What is the one task that you despise doing each day? Once you have chosen your “frog” make it a habit to wake up every morning and do that task first.
Learn some other valuable time management tactics by watching this video…
*What did you learn? Leave me a comment!
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Thanks Brian.
As usual your posts are great.
Looking forward to more posts like that!
Igor
Thank you Brian: That was a perfect blog for me today. Starting a new business and facing each day with the opportunities in front of me. I will paste this one on my wall!!!
Thanks Brian. Great stuff as always. Find your material very informative and effective and plan to promote it quite a bit at my blog.
I know I need to use my time better… thank you Brian!
Not only in making my lists – but in coming up with a plan – and WORKING it! I’ve got your Goals Report and Flight Plan to help – thanks!
Love the term “positive addiction” … it’s my new ideal! Excellent post.
What is my frog? I have not found out yet, but I keep on searching.
Thank you Brian for your positiv input!
I love the metaphor used here. There is highly insightful and empowering message on this post. The paragraph that resonates with me most is the “developing of a positive addiction.” Awesome post.
Brian,
I try to follow your advice and principles, but it is difficult with an 8 month old in the house.
I was overjoyed when I achieved more than what I wanted to last weekend [the only real time I get to work on my PhD whilst away on a leave of absence] and that was simply because I “Ate my frogs” all weekend.
I was so happy, that when I shared it with my friend, I prefaced my emails with “Eating ugly toads”, since they were such dreaded and awful tasks, yet I managed to get through them.
There was DEFINITELY a sense of euphoria in having achieved them.
If only I had more time and could press on – babies do tend to slow you down a bit.
But thanks to you Brian, and to Tony Robbins as well I continue to chip away where I can, the goals are set – and I will make a difference one day.
Pen
Melbourne, Australia
Thanks a lot Brian,
i really loved the values that you’ve shared and considered you as one of the prime movers of my life.
all the best,
Jerome
I never get tired of revisiting these central tenets. Practice makes perfect!
Thanks Brian for this brilliant post.
I try to practice these invaluable techniques in my job and personal life every day.
Cheers and best wishes.
Neil
As ever Brian, you provide the most wonderful, helpful and effective information EVER. This post has reinforced my early morning journalling thoughts this morning to tackle 3-4 key tasks this week. I have eaten 2 frogs today! Thank you so much… Lucy-Ann (UK)
Cool post, just subscribed.
Awsome post Brian!
So clear and practical
Looking forward to your next insightful post.
Cheers
Filipe
dear guru tips boost my confidence level
Thanks Brian! Of course: “Knowing” is not the same as “doing”!
Back to work, back to work, back to work!
Action is the absolute key I do not know how many times I have had ideas and then not capitalized on them because of the fear of failure. But now I keep my bias toward action.
I have not eaten my frog today as I got side-tracked by someone else’s. It’s now time to open wide and gulp that green thing down.
Thanks for all you do and share!
Thanks a lot Brian!
Very illustrative example with eating frog!
I have subscribed to your feed recently and find it very useful and helping me to get back to work. I have started compiling mind maps from the contents of the feed and it became even more useful as I all ideas and thoughts available at a single glance.
Thanks again!
I was particularly amused by the first sentence in the post. Not only is this post going to help to get more done per time, it is also going to help restructure ones life. Accomplishing what you fear the most gives a great happiness to the individual.
Good work! Thank you.
Love this book. I’ve read it once and have listened to it on audio book over 7 times. Of course I’m talking about Brian’s famous book “eat that frog”.
Phil
Thanks much for that nicely written piece of text.
,..] http://www.briantracy.com is one another relavant source of tips on this issue,..]
Great thoughts! I definitely have a few frogs that I save until dinner time but no more! Thanks Brian!
My frog has always been making the initial contact with a new prospect. Prospecting is one HUGE TOAD. I will resolve to eat it first everyday.
Thanks
Brian,I have found out my frog.Thanks for your book.
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Great Tip!
The best way I found to improve is to start implementing Brian’s recommendations without thinking too much about whether I am going to be able to do it or not.
Wait a few days and see if things have changed for the better. If it has continue doing it, if not just analyze and see where you can change things for the better.
Well, it seems that I got the advice a bit late, but thanks anyway!
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What a wonderful piece you’ve got here.
Simple Spencer got me here and I remain grateful for that…
As usual brain you are full of inspiriation am very api for this post looking forward to seeing more of that.
A bit late for me, but needed this advice. Thanks, Brian.
thanks brian for sowing a positive attitude in me
I have read alot of your book and it has really helped me shape my life. you are one in a million with the straight forward approach you use and the easy to understand things you use are second to none. thank for being a good mentor
Nice sir it is very helpfull for me .