Have you ever heard the phrase:
“Eat the frog?”
It comes from a quote that is often used by productivity authors to emphasize that we can avoid procrastination by completing the tasks that we’ve been putting off early in the day, so we can then focus on other things.
Though the quote has been attributed to Mark Twain, it actually came from a French humorist named Nicolas Chamfort (1741-1794):
Swallow a toad in the morning if you want to encounter
nothing more disgusting the rest of the day.
I’ve found this advice to be helpful in many areas of my life, mostly because I have a tendency to procrastinate with tasks I am dreading to do. I often wait till the last day something is due before finishing it, whether it’s my driver’s license registration, field trip permission slips and immunization records, or projects at work. The tasks float in and out of brain, taking up energy because I continuously remember them and realize they are not getting done. Then, I get stressed completing them at the very last minute, sometimes missing deadlines, or even worse, getting it done just in the nick of time and having the (undeserved) reward of completing the task…which only makes me more likely to do it again! All in all it’s a cycle that doesn’t work well for me.
When I’ve tried to ‘eat the frog’ in the past, I’ve noticed that those dreaded tasks get out of my head and I am free to move onto other things. It is such a relief! They are not poking and nagging at me all day, or week, and instead they get checked off the to-do list and I can do something else. For me this technique replaces the negative energy of an unfinished job with a boost of satisfaction and motivation.
As I was thinking about this technique the other day, it suddenly occurred to me that there’s a whole other set of tasks that I keep putting off and not “eating”: my self-care. Those tasks that nourish my body, mind and heart, and that help me be more productive in every area of my life. I’m not sure they are really ‘frogs,’ because I do feel like I want to do them. Nevertheless, I am procrastinating and they are not getting done even though I need them in my life. Simple things like getting my hair cut regularly. Or using that gift certificate for a massage that my husband gave me years ago. Important things like scheduling a night out with a girlfriend or calling the babysitter to finally plan that date night everyone keeps saying we need to do.
Why don’t we use productivity principles for things that matter but that keep getting pushed aside, like our self-care?
For example, what would happen if early in the day I “ate the frog” and found 10 minutes for myself to sit quietly with a cup of coffee? Or how might my week feel different if on Sunday night I texted some friends to make plans for the next weeks, or identified a date for that ever-elusive spa treatment by myself? It might just have the dual benefit of getting out of my head AND providing the opportunity to do something that I know will benefit me and my relationships.
How can you “eat the frog” this week to promote your well-being?
