10 - Eat a Frog for Breakfast

No, not literally.

What is “eating a frog for breakfast”?

• The expression “eat a frog for breakfast” comes from Mark Twain who said, “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you for the rest of the day.” Don’t worry, he also meant this metaphorically. Basically, the idea is that doing something that seems “terrible” like oh I don’t know eating a live frog for breakfast, will make everything else you need to do that day seem less terrible and consequently easier to do.

Why should I “eat a frog for breakfast”?

• You should tackle that big, bad, terrible task first thing in the morning because it will get the ball rolling. Not only will you have started your day with some incredible momentum, but also you’ve now completed the worst thing on the day’s to-do list, so it only gets easier from here on out. Plus, this way even if this one “terrible” thing is the only thing you accomplish every day, chances are you are still making great strides towards your goals.

How do I “eat a frog for breakfast”?

• There are a few common ways of determining what exactly is that most “terrible” task that warrants its comparison to the eating of a live frog. The most common is picking the hardest task for you to finish, whatever that may be, and doing it the first opportunity you have to work. Unlike the last step, this one doesn’t require that you do it at any particular time, just as soon as you can. Although I will say, the earlier you eat the frog the earlier you start reaping the benefits.

• My preferred way of eating the frog is actually not to do my most “difficult” task first, but rather the most “stressful” one. Sometimes, believe it or not, the most stressful task might be the easiest one like calling CVS or walking to the grocery store. Sometimes we get stressed out about weird things ok?? And that’s just how it is. But the reason I like doing my most stressful task first is because then I get to feel that much less stressed for the entire day and I still get the extra kick of motivation. You’d be surprised how much stress these tiny (or not so tiny) tasks hold over your day. So try getting rid of it. No better way to start your day (ok maybe there are a few :) but you know what I mean).

10 – Start eating frogs for breakfast, and once you’re enjoying them on the reg, slide on over to step 11.